The Government Accountability Office is expected to rule by Thursday on Boeing’s protest over the Air Force’s decision to go with the Northrop Grumman/EADS tanker. Boeing is desperate for the $40 billion contract, but the Air Force insists that the Northrop Grumman proposal is superior.
But Congressman Norm Dicks had the best line of the day: “No matter what happens with the GAO . . . I think Congress has to step in to this and do what the Air Force didn’t do, and that is to have a real independent look at this thing.” Wait a second: Congress is independent? The same body whose members routinely intervene in government decisions and market forces to achieve outcomes narrowly beneficial to their districts (and top donors)? Moreover, is a congressman who represents Washington state, home to Boeing’s primary aircraft assembly plants and a large share of Boeing’s jobs, really qualified to take a “real independent look” at this issue?
Washington Ruling Expected on $40 Billion Aerial-Refueling Contract [W$J]
Evan Sparks's Aviation Policy Blog 