Baker's business ties raise questions on his envoy role

When President Bush tapped longtime family adviser James A. Baker III to try to persuade U.S. allies to forgive Iraq's crushing $127 billion foreign debt, he summoned one of the country's most well-connected former officials for a difficult task.

Now those same connections - a web of contacts that extends from Baker's Houston law firm to the worlds of Washington insiders and financiers - are raising questions about potential conflicts of interest.

The key issue: Can Baker, a former secretary of state whose business interests run far and wide, avoid benefiting his friends and business associates as he labors to help Bush?

Baker will meet leaders in Tokyo and Seoul, South Korea, today and in Beijing tomorrow to seek debt concessions. The trip follows a successful tour of Europe last week. Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Russia pledged to reduce the $40 billion that Iraq owes them.

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http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/nation/7577641.htm

Bush once had to sort of work for a living and could not make it so he has forgotten us all.Where is Powell? He ran him to get black votes and now that the blacks seem to be running a way Bush has put him aside and dragged back Baker. His poll numbers also went down just before Baker came in. He always helps when a Bush is in trouble.

little man Powell is just a figurehead just like little woman Condi. It immediately rang a bell when I saw James Baker III doing Powell's job. How convenient that Powell was having surgery. But a few days after surgery, cancer surgery, Powell was in Pakistan. He must have been getting radioation treatment in Pakistan.

any details??? Just agreeing that the debt SHOULD be without actually doing it isn't a success