Lobbyists for so-called U.S. “defense” contractors often live lavish lifestyles. Many have mansions in Maryland or Virginia with swimming pools and iron gates.
The billions spent on government defense and intelligence generates powerful forces in Washington.
Now Yahoo News is out with a report that the Pentagon official who saved taxpayers billions of dollars on defense contracts, Shay Assad, was fired shortly after proposing a money-saving regulation in the Federal Register.
On Aug. 24, 2018, the proposed rule was published. The rule would pay many defense contractors 50% of their contracts until the contractors completed their contracts. Then the other 50% would be paid. (The current ratio is 80%/20%.)
Defense companies were outraged. Many pressured their congressmen.
Not long after, Assad was ordered by Pentagon superiors to delete all emails about the proposal (perhaps to immunize superiors from fallout).
“At the end of October, Assad was given an ultimatum: He could be demoted to a position within the Defense Contract Management Agency in Boston starting January 2019, or he would be terminated.”
