Rapid Fire June 27, 2012: Head Honchos Hunting

• The CEOs of prime contractors including Lockheed Martin and EADS North America met with US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta to discuss how to avoid next year’s pending budget sequester. A previous meeting of industry bigwigs with the White House’s budget office did not seem to bear fruit.

• Republican members of the Senate Armed Services Committee John McCain [AZ], Lindsey Graham [SC] and Kelly Ayotte [NH] have recently expressed their support for the industry following yet another study showing a great number of jobs are at stake, but there’s still no clear path to avoid sequestration before the presidential election. Graham is even advising defense contractors to send layoff notices as soon as possible to force Congress to act. In an apparently endless stalemate, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid counters that increased revenue will have to be part of any deal.