Join getAbstract to access the summary!

The Halliburton Agenda

Join getAbstract to access the summary!

The Halliburton Agenda

The Politics of Oil and Money

Wiley,

15 min read
10 take-aways
Text available

What's inside?

From John Connally to Dick Cheney, Halliburton has corporate history fueled by high-powered politics as well as oil.

Editorial Rating

7

Qualities

  • Comprehensive
  • Eye Opening

Recommendation

Author Dan Briody has written a book that goes beyond pundit finger-pointing over the controversial "no-bid" contracts relationship between Halliburton and Vice President Dick Cheney. This is a serious examination of the high-octane blend of profit and politics that fuels the Bush administration’s agenda. Briody begins with an extensive history of two Texas companies, Halliburton and Brown & Root (now KBR). He deftly portrays how they made their fortunes despite Great Depression hardships, World War II and political intrigues aplenty. Briody pulls no punches while maintaining a reportorial (if not totally objective) tone, although people who hold different political views might argue with his opinions and conclusions. getAbstract recommends this saga to anyone looking for a deeper understanding of the ongoing tryst between corporate America and its politicians. While this book is not presented as a smoking gun, it portrays insider politics that smolder like an oil fire you can’t quite extinguish, leaving sort of an ugly haze.

Summary

Modest Beginnings

The story of Halliburton, a company that now has more than $13 billion in annual revenues, began with the birth of Erle Palmer Halliburton outside Memphis on Sept. 22, 1892. Erle was one of five children. His father, handyman Edwin Gray Halliburton, died when the boy was 13, and left his family poverty-stricken. Young Erle had already resolved to beat his circumstances.

Within a few years, and with nothing to lose, he decided to try to make his own way in the world. When he left home to seek his fortune, he announced that he wouldn’t return until he had earned at least a million dollars. At the time, young Halliburton could hardly have anticipated the worldwide tour that awaited him. At 18, he joined the U.S. Navy. Since he showed a natural inclination toward mechanics, he specialized in engineering and hydraulics. After he left the service in 1915, Erle found a job earning $100 a month operating a pressure irrigation system in Los Angeles. He settled down and got married to Vida Taber, but he was still a long way away from earning his first million.

The Oil Bug

In 1918, Halliburton and the nascent oil industry finally began their lifelong...

About the Author

Dan Briody is an award-winning business journalist who appeared as an expert in Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11. He previously wrote The Iron Triangle: Inside the Secret World of the Carlyle Group. He has also written for numerous major magazines.

Comment on this summary