COMING TO AMERICA Bandar and his scandal, with Donald Rumsfeld
As Saudi Prince Bandar's UK scandal rages, the monocles of horrified British defense contractors keep plunking into martini glasses. And since the media hot-dog prince has famous friendships with Washington's power-elite, one has to wonder when a similar scandal may wash up on our shores.
The UK tempest started with allegations that British defense behemoth BAE Systems secretly funneled nearly $2 billion to Bandar's Washington, D.C., bank accounts in return for the highly profitable privilege of catering to the Saudi's weapons needs. British Prime Minister Tony Blair tried to halt the probe last year, but British investigators have since unsheathed their calabash pipes and oversize magnifying glasses, tracking the trail of money in a shadowy, Syriana-esque world of international intrigue and ugly global realities. Now investigators from both the U.S. Justice Department and Congress may join in the hunt.