Pentagon's revolving door spins again
The war in Iraq is where most critics of the Pentagon aim their fire. It's been a while since the "revolving door" drew much fevered attention. But as he begins turning out the lights, President Bush has reached into the ranks of defense contractors to fill the post of assistant secretary of Defense for public affairs. The White House announced today that Bush was nominating Robert Hastings, Hastings' nomination, which mush be confirmed by the Senate, also reflects the ties not ony of a major defense contractor with the Pentagon, but of European contractors: The acronym BAE comes from the company's original name: British Aerospace. The company, working closer to the ground, is the prime contractor of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Hastings, a former Army Apache helicopter pilot, has already moved into the post -- sans Senate confirmation -- as principal deputy assistant secretary. Of course, there could be a loss of income from his time in the private sector. According to the International Assn. of Business Communicators, he was on the public speaking circuit -- asking for fees ranging from $500 to $2,499 a pop (with discounts for association chapters). --James Gerstenzang Photo: Department of Defense
until recently vice president of corporate communications at BAE Systems Inc., to the top communications job at the Pentagon -- a post that covers such wide turf that it includes not only serving up pronouncements on war and peace, but also -- deep in the ranks of the subordinates -- scheduling performances of military bands.
