Lockheed Martin is the "leader of the PACs" (Political Action Committees) among U.S. weapons manufacturing firms. According to published accounts by the Centre for Responsive Politics, the company made over $10.6 million in campaign contributions to candidates and party committees from 1990 to 2000, including $3.4 million in donations in the run-up to the year 2000 elections.
The company's contributions are targeted towards the politicians that are in the position to do it the most good. For example, Lockheed Martin served as one of a select group of corporate sponsors that pitched in $60,000 each to support the "Lott Hop," a dance party fundraiser that was held in honor of then Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott :lol: (funy how these names come back isn't? the guy who said that if Mississippi had elected a segregationist candidiate it wouldn't have the problems it has today - he was Republican House leader at the time) during the Republican convention in Philadelphia in the summer of 2000. The company has also pledged a $1 million contribution in support of the "Trent Lott Leadership Institute" at the University of Mississippi. (perhaps they'd like to build him a new house after the Hurricane, as he was the one who Bush rather tastelessly joked about, and said he looked forward to sitting on the verander of his newly built house with him etc)
Lockheed Martin was the top corporate contributor to members of the House Armed Services Committee during 1999/2000, and among the top ten contributors to the House Appropriations Committee. The company has strong ties to both major parties. Lockheed Martin Vice-President Bruce Jackson was a top fundraiser for the Dole for President campaign in 1996, and he was the chief drafter of the foreign policy platform of the Republican party for the year 2000 elections.
You'll remmeber Bruce Jackson Clive, he was one of the names I gave you a few months ago as a founding signatoury member of Bush's PNAC cheerleaders. Jackson isn't bashful about his involvement though;
"I wrote the Republican Party foreign Policy Platform" - Washinton Post interview
He denied lobbying for space contracts, but acknowledges his close links to the Republican Party and the Bush regime. You won't be too surprised to hear that CBS are reporting that the award of the contract to replace the Space Shuttle has gone to Lockhead Martin then? Incidentally, until very recently they had a well known space scientist on the Lockhead Martin Board called Lynn Cheney. I'll let you guess who she's involved with.
