Roger Wiker and Dante's Inferno
Roger Wiker is in the running to be placed
in the Dante's 7th Circle of Hell along with the other crooked politicians already there.
Before being given Sen. Trent Lotts senate
seat, Roger Wiker was a Representative from Mississippi; born in Pontotoc, Pontotoc
County, Miss., July 5, 1951; graduated Pontotoc High School, Pontotoc, Miss., 1969; B.A.,
University of Mississippi, University, Miss., 1973; J.D., University of Mississippi,
University, Miss., 1975; Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps; United States Air
Force, 1976-1980; United States Air Force Reserve, 1980-2003; staff for United States
Representative Trent Lott of Mississippi, House Committee on Rules, 1980-1982; Tupelo,
Miss., judge pro tem; Lee County, Miss., public defender, 1984-1987; member of the
Mississippi state senate, 1988-1994; elected as a Republican to the One Hundred Fourth and
to the six succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1995-December 31, 2007); resigned on December
31, 2007, to accept appointment to the Senate following the resignation of Trent Lott;
took oath of office as a U.S. senator December 31, 2007.
Early last month the Project on Government Oversight put
out THIS report
detailing possibly shady dealings in Roger Wicker's actions. That article caught Will
Barwell's eye garnering THIS
post discussing "Roger Wicker's Convenient Interest in Unmanned Flight."
Rep. Wicker's Unmanned Aerial Pork
On March 22, 2007, Rep. Roger Wicker (R-MS) requested, in
a letter
to the chair and ranking member (pdf) of House Appropriations, an earmark for a
little-known aerospace company to develop an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) project in his
district. The company, Aurora Flight Sciences,
has been growing rapidly and now looks set to expand further, in part a result of their
cozy relationship with Rep. Wicker. The congressman himself may soon get a promotion as
well. With the recent announcement of Sen. Trent Lott’s (R-MS) retirement at the end
of the year, some
speculate that Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour is likely to appoint Rep. Wicker to
replace him until a special election is held next November.
The earmark in question ultimately appeared in the FY
2008 Defense Appropriations bill with support on the Senate side from Sen. Lott and Thad
Cochran, according to data compiled by Taxpayers for Common Sense. Listed under Army
Research, Development, Testing & Evaluation (RDT&E), it designated $6 million for Aurora’s Orion High
Altitude Long Endurance UAV, which is currently under development in collaboration
with Boeing’s Phantom Works office.
Additional research reveals that Rep. Wicker and Aurora
have benefited each other for some time now. Aurora funded a plane flight
(pdf) in 2005 for Rep. Wicker from their headquarters in Manassas, VA to Starkville, MS.
Then during the 2006 elections, Aurora
was the top contributor to Rep. Wicker’s campaign, giving a total of $13,000
according to Opensecrets.org. Last but not least, Rep. Wicker’s
former chief-of-staff, John Keast, left the congressman’s office in 2006 to work for Cornerstone Government
Affairs, where, as of August, he’s been paid $60,000 to lobby Congress on defense
appropriations for Aurora.
Aurora’s Orion project began last year at
Mississippi State University’s Raspet Flight Research Lab in Starkville, MS. At that
time, the company also
began construction of a new production facility for Orion UAVs at the Golden Triangle
Regional Airport in nearby Columbus, MS. The production facility opened in May of this
year and Reps. Wicker and Chip Pickering spoke at the ceremony.
Aurora has won three multi-million dollar federal
contracts over the past six months, as pointed out by Rep. Wicker in an Aurora press
release last month. At least two, and possibly all three, relate to the Orion project
and were awarded by the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command and the Air Force
Research Laboratory.
In addition to the earmark, contracts, and production
facility, Aurora has also recently expanded its high-level staff. In June of this year, Dan Brady joined the
company as VP of Aerostructures. He formerly worked as a director at Vought Aircraft
Industries, managing activities related to Bell and Boeing cargo aircraft (most likely the
V-22 Osprey), and prior to that, Brady worked at Northrop Grumman. Last month, former
Commander of US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) and Army General Bryan “Doug”
Brown joined Aurora’s
Board of Directors. General Brown had retired from SOCOM earlier this year.
Aurora Flight Sciences, headquartered in Manassas, VA,
has facilities located in Virginia, West Virginia, Massachusetts, and Mississippi.
According to their most recent contract filings with the Federal
Procurement Data Service (FPDS), Aurora has 267 employees and annual revenues of
$32,000,000.
Now the Washington Post has noticed now that Wicker is a
Senator and deserving of more scrutiny.
Roger Wicker's Convenient Interest In Unmanned Flight
Not that Haley Barbour ever lost much sleep over a
conflict of interest, but with his appointment of a new U.S. senator on the horizon and
Rep. Roger Wicker (R-Citizens Council) the apparent frontrunner, he might want to consider
Wicker's
cozy relationship with a Virginia-based weapons developer. From POGO.org...
On March 22, 2007, Rep. Roger Wicker (R-MS) requested, in
a letter to the chair and ranking member of House Appropriations, an earmark for a
little-known aerospace company to develop an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) project in his
district. The company, Aurora Flight Sciences, has been growing rapidly and now looks set
to expand further, in part a result of their cozy relationship with Rep. Wicker. ...
The earmark in question ultimately appeared in the FY 2008 Defense Appropriations bill
with support on the Senate side from Sen. [Trent] Lott and Thad Cochran, according to data
compiled by Taxpayers for Common Sense. Listed under Army Research, Development, Testing
& Evaluation (RDT&E), it designated $6 million for Aurora’s Orion High
Altitude Long Endurance UAV, which is currently under development in collaboration with
Boeing’s Phantom Works office.
No big deal, right? Aurora gets a few bucks for a project
in Starkville, but that's just a congressman bringing home the bacon, right? Maybe, but
not before Wicker greased his own axle...
Additional research reveals that Rep. Wicker and Aurora have benefited each other for some
time now. Aurora funded a plane flight in 2005 for Rep. Wicker from their headquarters in
Manassas, VA to Starkville, MS. Then during the 2006 elections, Aurora was the top
contributor to Rep. Wicker’s campaign, giving a total of $13,000 according to
Opensecrets.org.
OK, OK. Perhaps worthy of a raised eyebrow, but nothing improper there. Until...
Last but not least, Rep. Wicker’s former
chief-of-staff, John Keast, left the congressman’s office in 2006 to work for
Cornerstone Government Affairs, where, as of August, he’s been paid $60,000 to lobby
Congress on defense appropriations for Aurora.
...which officially sets off the WillBardwell.com
sketchiness alarm. So not only does a leading defense contractor have a $13,000 investment
in Wicker's ear (and another $3,500 already for the 2008 cycle), but his former top adviser
is now on the Aurora dole. And, coincidentally, Wicker continues to go to bat for them
again and again.
That might not smell fishy enough to influence Barbour, but Mississippi voters could be a
different story altogether.
“Roger Wicker is the poster child for quid pro quo
politics, repaying campaign cash with an even more generous earmark,” said Wayne
Dowdy, chairman of the Mississippi Democratic Party.
“Sen. Wicker was elected to look out for the people of Mississippi, not to fill his
campaign coffers. When the moving company relocates Wicker’s things from his House
office to his temporary Senate office, I hope they leave the revolving door behind.”
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