The KC-X Tanker Deal: Tracking the Lobbyists

KC-30 Concept(click to view full) The $35 billion KC-45 aerial tanker deal has attracted a lot of attention and commentary lately, as one might expect. It has also attracted a lot of lobbying dollars – again, as one might expect. While the Pentagon hopes it can keep a lid on the program’s planned costs, it’s an absolute certainty that the lobbying bill will grow quite a bit before all is said and done. Taxpayers for Common Sense, who built that useful Congressional earmark database, offers some figures re: lobbying monies paid to date – and DID looks at the message in terms of the political system, and the industry… TCS RE: Boeing “Boeing has been among the top three defense companies in terms of lobbying expenditures for years, retaining more than 30 lobbying firms and consultants outside of the 17 in-house lobbyists registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act… they spent big on the tanker campaign between January 2005 and June 2007, according to disclosure filings that specifically name the tanker program. These include: * $1.2 million to Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer and Feld for “air tanker replacement;” * $240 thousand to Kerr Consulting (headed by Senator Carl Levin’s former chief […]