Amazon wants to depose President Trump along with current and former top defense officials after the Pentagon awarded a $10 billion cloud contract to Amazon’s competitor, Microsoft.
The technology giant seeks testimony from Trump, Defense Secretary Mark Esper, former Defense Secretary James Mattis, and four other officials who “played pivotal roles” in awarding the cloud contract, according to court documents reviewed by CNBC.
Amazon was considered an early favorite to win the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure cloud computing contract, which has the potential to be worth as much as $10 billion over a decade. The Defense Department named Microsoft the winner of the contract on Oct. 25 after Trump had said he would look into the deal in July. Trump has also been heavily critical of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
“President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to use his position as President and Commander in Chief to interfere with government functions – including federal procurements – to advance his personal agenda,” an Amazon Web Services spokesperson said.
“The preservation of public confidence in the nation’s procurement process requires discovery and supplementation of the administrative record, particularly in light of President Trump’s order to ‘screw Amazon,'” the spokesperson added, referencing a quote from Trump that appeared in Mattis’s memoir. “The question is whether the President of the United States should be allowed to use the budget of the DoD to pursue his own personal and political ends.”
