[PAA-Discuss] Lynn Gets Waiver from Obama Lobbyist Rules

[Ron and Kris Graham]

Barack Obama is a hypocrite of the first order. He reneges on his own
goddamned rule in order to get a former Raytheon executive at DoD. What more
can we expect from The Most Holy who presides over a war based economy?
Obama is also a war monger as evidenced by his allowing a U.S. military
drone to shoot missiles into Pakistan which killed 20 civilians. Change we
can believe in? Yeah, right. Tell me another one. 

 

Explain these decisions Obama supporters...........or is it too soon to hold
His Holiness' feet to the fire??

 

Kris

 

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/01/27-2

 

Published on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 by Federal Times

Lynn Gets Waiver from Obama Lobbyist Rules 

by William Matthews

WASHINGTON - The White House said Jan. 23 its tough new ethics rules won't
apply to its nominee for deputy Defense secretary, William Lynn. The
decision clears the way for a confirmation vote, the chairman of the Senate
Armed Services Committee said.

Questions arose about Lynn's suitability after President Barack Obama
imposed the rules Jan. 21 to keep lobbyists out of top government posts.
Lynn was a vice president and lobbyist for defense giant Raytheon.

Hours before the Office of Management and Budget decision, four government
watchdog organizations urged the Senate Armed Services Committee to reject
Lynn for the No. 2 post at the Pentagon.

Even top Obama aides conceded Lynn's appointment would require a waiver from
new rules that prohibit lobbyists from serving in agencies they have lobbied
in the previous two years.

Lynn was senior vice president for government operations and strategy at the
defense giant Raytheon and a registered Raytheon lobbyist until July.

His nomination "causes an impossible conflict," officials from four
organizations said in a letter to Sens. Carl Levin and John McCain, the
chairman and senior Republican on the Armed Services Committee.

But in a late afternoon statement, Levin said the waiver to Obama's ethics
rules "has removed an obstacle to the confirmation of Bill Lynn to be deputy
secretary of defense."

The Armed Services Committee will still insist that Lynn "recuse himself for
a period of a year from any decisions involving his prior employer unless
specifically authorized to participate by an appropriate ethics official,"
Levin said. "I support Mr. Lynn's nomination."

McCain remained skeptical. "Before I can determine whether to support his
nomination," he said, "I intend to ask him to clarify for the record what
matters and decisions will require his recusal."
McCain said he applauded Obama's more stringent ethics rules, and "had hoped
he would not find it necessary to waive them so soon."

The watchdog organizations argued that waiving the new ethics rule is "a
frontal violation" of reforms intended to keep lobbyists out of top
government posts.

But confirming him without a waiver would mean he must recuse himself from
matters affecting Raytheon. The fifth-largest defense company sells $18
billion worth of missiles, radars, sensors, munitions, space systems and
other technology to the military and other government agencies annually.

Sitting out decisions that involve Raytheon "would make it impossible for
[Lynn] to effectively serve" as deputy Defense secretary, the four heads of
watchdog organizations said. They are the directors of the Project on
Government Oversight, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington,
the Government Accountability Project and the legislative representative of
Public Citizen.

In an effort to reduce the influence of special interests and restore the
public's faith in government, Obama proclaimed new ethics rules Jan. 21 that
he said are the toughest in history.

"If you are a lobbyist entering my administration, you will not be able to
work on matters you lobbied on, or in the agencies you lobbied during the
previous two years," Obama said. "When you leave government, you will not be
able to lobby my administration for as long as I am president."

Later, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Obama's ethics rules included
a provision for waivers if they are approved by the White House Counsel. He
said Lynn "is superbly qualified" for the deputy Defense secretary job.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters he asked for an exception to
be made for Lynn because he is the best candidate for the job.

But the rising flap over Lynn and lobbying has raised doubts on the Armed
Services Committee.
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., said Lynn illustrates the "industry-government
executive revolving door phenomenon," in which industry executives take
Pentagon jobs and are perceived to benefit the companies they once worked
for.

"To be frank, the way DoD does business with defense contractors must change
because the status quo is unacceptable," McCaskill said. "In my limited
interaction with Mr. Lynn to date, I have not sensed a strong commitment to
this type of change."

Even so, McCaskill said she would not object to Lynn's confirmation. 

copyright C 2009 Army Times Publishing Co

 

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