Classic Case of Revolving Door at Defense Department

Printer-friendly versionSend by email

Until June 2008, William Lynn was senior VP-government operations for Raytheon, the world's fifth largest defense contractor. Despite that recent stint as a lobbyist, President-elect Barack Obama has nominated him to become deputy defense secretary, which would put him "in charge of day-to-day Pentagon operations." The nomination requires Congressional approval. According to O'Dwyer's, "The Washington Post predicts Lynn will oversee Defense Secretary Robert Gates' program to overhaul DOD's weapons acquisition activity." Before his stint with Raytheon, Lynn was the Pentagon's comptroller and chief budget officer. He also previously worked as director of DOD's program analysis and evaluation.