Patriotic Company

Halliburton Takes the Money and Runs

Haliburton Co. (NYSE:HAL) is the latest U.S. company headed oversees for friendlier tax laws.
The company is relocating its corporate headquarters from Houston to Dubai, which the Associated Press points out has some of the world's most liberal tax and residency laws. Haliburton said its moving because of the growth opportunities in the region and analysts say its smart strategically. The company also is eager to jumpstart is stock price which has barely budged over the past year.
Though the stated reasons are financial, there's obviously a political dimension.
The Democrats who control Congress are going to make Haliburton's life miserable. Last month, federal investigators claimed that Halliburton was responsible for $2.7 billion of the $10 billion in contractor waste and overcharging in Iraq, the AP said.
Not surprisingly, bigshots in Congress were outraged.
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, called it "an insult to the U.S. soldiers and taxpayers who paid the tab for their no-bid contracts and endured their overcharges for all these years." House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) may hold a hearing on the issue, an aide told Reuters.
There's been a hubbub over similar moves by Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE:TYC) and other companies. In reality, there's little the Congress can do. In fact, I bet some Democrats would be happy to help Haliburton box its stuff up.