Maybe I just wasn't paying attention, but why was the Hammond guy being targeted and how did John Cusack figure it out? Don't tell me it was simply because he was an "obstacle to progress," because that would push this movie from mediocre to suck.
sharePrepare for sucktitude.
You picked out the reason exactly. He was standing in the way of a program that was considered "progress"
To top it off, that one reported just happened to phrase the statement exactly like Freeman did. In "The Contract 2", we watch Cusack nervously report every single person mildly referred to by anyone as "an obstacle to progress" as a potential hit.
And, he'd be right every time!