Recently departed Boeing executive and acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan is facing renewed scrutiny over ties to his former company. This recent press for his man at the Pentagon has two lessons for Trump.
Patrick Shanahan spent more than 30 years at Boeing. In mid-2017, he moved to the Pentagon to take a position as Deputy Secretary of Defense. On Jan. 1, after Mattis’ exit, he became acting secretary of defense. Even after signing an ethics agreement recusing himself from matters involving Boeing, lingering questions about his not-so-distant commercial loyalties abound.
During high-level internal meetings, Shanahan reportedly talked up Boeing and slammed competitors arguing that contrasts would have been better executed had they been awarded to his former employer. Shanahan, for example, lodged heavy criticism against Lockheed Martin for the F-35 fighter jet program calling it “fucked up” and adding that “if it had gone to Boeing, it would be doing much better.”
To be clear, there are plenty of reasons to criticize the F-35 program. It has been plagued by massive cost overruns, delays and the questions about sustainability. But those criticisms, coming from a former rival and paired with praise for his company, color even legitimate concerns. And his colleagues aren’t universally critical. Other individuals privy to meetings with Shanahan pushed back on the characterization of the DoD chief as a Boeing champion, saying that he did not exhibit such a preference.
But the bad press and the real concerns raised about even subconscious preference for Boeing from Shanahan should be a learning opportunity for the White House.
First, businessmen may be good at what they do, but casting aside business ties to enter politics isn’t as easy as signing an ethics agreement. Although participation in formal decisions might be off his desk, casual remarks, criticisms and other expressions of preference are much more difficult to regulate and rule out. Moreover, there is good reason for public-interest criticism of such ties given the revolving door between public and private jobs and plenty examples of the pitfalls of such relationships.
Second, the Department of Defense still needs a chief. Shanahan might get the job done for now, despite the criticism, but a replacement for the top Pentagon job should be a priority. Although he did already serve as the deputy secretary of defense, Shanahan’s tenure at the Pentagon and with the military in general has been brief. As the U.S. confronts new challenges and potentially enters a new era of great power competition, the Pentagon needs leadership with on-the-ground and not just boardroom experience.
