Pentagon Opens Internal Inquiry of Acting Defense Chief's Ties to Boeing

[h=1]Pentagon Opens Internal Inquiry of Acting Defense Chief’s Ties to Boeing[/h]
Pentagon Opens Internal Inquiry of Acting Defense Chief’s Ties to Boeing - The New York Times

WASHINGTON — The Defense Department’s inspector general said on Wednesday that it was investigating complaints that the acting defense secretary, Patrick M. Shanahan, had been promoting his former employer, Boeing, and disparaging its military contractor competitors.

The investigation will examine complaints filed last week by a watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Dwrena K. Allen, a spokeswoman for the inspector general’s office, said that investigators had informed Mr. Shanahan of the inquiry.


Mr. Shanahan told lawmakers last week that he supported an investigation.

(mine)

Patrick Shanahan should have never been put in charge of the Defense Department, it's just a situation that should have never happened. If he's not following his ethics agreement then he should be fired.

'Acting' Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan has been saying negative things about Boeing's competitors and was shilling for Boeing products at the defense department. Patrick Shanahan is a former Boeing executive and shouldn't have been put in charge of the Defense Department to begin with. Numerous complaints of bias and accusations that he has influenced spending in our defense budget that's well over a trillion dollars. Waste, fraud and abuse are being investigated by the Inspector General.

Trump's Directors and Secretaries of departments, are just figures, image, spokes-people. This guy Shanahan is a salesman for Boeing he knows NOTHING about National security at all that's why he's appointed as director or whatever just to be an image and not a true leader. The Ambassador to Mexico for the United States knows nothing about foreign diplomacy! He's a deadbeat lawyer that can't even speak Spanish.

The IG needs to look at the complaint. If there is an issue then take the appropriate action.

A good read

Patrick Shanahan could be what the Pentagon needs — if he doesn’t become Trump’s yes man
By David Ignatius

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/patrick-shanahan-could-be-what-the-pentagon-needs--if-he-doesnt-become-trumps-yes-man/2019/02/26/9aa535fc-39fa-11e9-a2cd-307b06d0257b_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.b46c298556c1

Newt Gingrich, one of Trump’s confidants, told me approvingly this week: “Shanahan is probably the best manager to be secretary of defense we’ve seen in many years. He has a deep understanding about how we need to rethink big systems to be able to compete.”

Two basic conclusions about Shanahan emerged from a dozen interviews about him with Pentagon insiders over the past month. Internally, he may be precisely what the Pentagon needs — a tough manager who’s prepared to break some rice bowls to reform what the military buys and spends, and drag it fully into the 21st century.

“I’m used to being directive. I’m relentless,” Shanahan told me in an interview this month. I’ve gathered a half-dozen examples that support his claim. “He steps on people’s toes,” said Punaro. “He’s a tough customer. If you’re not performing, you’re going to hear about it.” The Pentagon could use that “fear factor.”

The sweet spot of a Shanahan appointment would be his proven skill as an engineer. He had a golden career at Boeing, moving from the 737 to the company’s troubled helicopter division, then managing its complex missile-defense programs and then taking on the toughest challenge of all, rescuing the innovative but foundering 787 Dreamliner.

Shanahan succeeded each time because he was willing to push colleagues and make enemies when necessary, former associates say. The ex-CEO of another defense company remembers how Shanahan repaired a broken 787 supply chain by sending Boeing technicians out to fix what some suppliers had botched.

“Pat blew things up,” he said. “It was painful. You could hear the cries from within Boeing.” But this bruising process helped save the plane.

You know how obnoxious you have to be for the DoD to start an investigation against you for being too supportive of Boeing?

Trump was going to nominate the Acting SecDef Shanahan to be SecDef pending approval by the Senate and hearings before the Armed Services Committee. Trump had wanted to do it last week but the grapevine was buzzing with this in the offing.

Looks now like Trump and his yes man Shanahan are sunk. Shanahan is a green eyeshades guy who was doing fine as deputy secretary to Jim Mattis in making Pentagon more efficient internally. However, Shanahan doesn't scare Putin or Kim, Xi, Maduro or anyone who is hostile to the USA. So as Trump's compliant new housepet Shanahan walked into a pack of dogs out back. The dogs of Washington politics.

Trump had wanted his now shot down nomination announcement of Shanahan as SecDef to be in the news while Trump and Pompey, er, Pompeo were declaring mission accomplished against Isis. That's gone bust too as Trump had to slip Shanahan's nomination back into the drawer because the long knives came out against him.