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Northrop Grumman Awaits Final Tanker Propsal
By Tiffany Craig Special Assignment Reporter
Published: Wed, March 19, 2008 - 6:30 pm
Tiffany Craig
That won't happen of one Congressman gets his way.
Kansas Representative Todd Tiahrt says Boeing wasn't treated fairly and Northrop Grumman and EADS have an unfair advantage.
Reporter Tiffany Craig sat down with Tiahrt to uncover the reasons behind the rhetoric.
Todd Tiahrt is a Kansas Congressman with a lot to say. From the House floor to national television, he is very outspoken about the Air Force choosing the Northrop Grumman and EADS over Boeing.
Tiffany asked, "If you're saying that an American company should be the ones to build this tanker, Boeing has no competition here! Tiarhart responded, "I do believe in competition, no question about it but I also believe in fair competition. We don't have that in this contract."
This Kansas Republican not only wants to change the tanker outcome but the process the Pentagon uses to award contracts. "Well, we should have questioned it when the Presidents helicopter was lost to a foreign supplier. We should have known there was a real problem when the light utility helicopter was lost to foreign manufacturer. Now it's just so blatant that we can't ignore it any further."
Tiahrt started a website in protest and has written countless letters. Last week he sent one to the President and another one is hot off the press to the Air Force. He told the Commander-in-Chief that "If (contract decision) not overturned it will negatively impact the United States for generations."
Tiffany pointed out what the Air Force brought their A game and won 4 out of 5 categories. Tiahrt says the Boeing team was misled about what the military wanted. "They thought that they were bidding for a replacement for the KC-135. What the Air Force actually bought was a replacement for the KC-10 so they were vastly misled before the competition was announced."
It's no secret that Tiahrt's district would benefit from a Boeing win. We also learned that the Congressman also once worked for Northrop's competitor. "I did work for Boeing and dealt with federal government on federal acquisitions in trying to bring jobs back into the Wichita area."
Now, Tiahrt is fighting for jobs again. This time he's doing it from his office on Capitol Hill.
Tiahrt only accepts emails from residents in his district. However, you can pick up the phone and call his office toll-free at 1.866.668.8478
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I have no horse in this bidding, however, what everyone seems to be missing in these comments is that Airbus which is the company that is supposed to be getting this contract is backed by a 5 million subsidy from countries such as France and others. This is not fair bidding on any scale. If we want to believe in fair trade then everything should be even across the board. This is why the US cannot compete with China, India, and other countries. If everything is even then it is fair.