Them's fightin' words ... Aboulafia vs. McCain

Aboulafia

vs.

McCain

From Aboulafia's blog last week:

\"We know that McCain influenced the tanker selection process\nagainst Boeing with multiple letters to Deputy SecDef Gordon England and\nSecDef Robert Gates. We also know that McCain, for good and/or bad reasons,\nstopped the original Boeing tanker lease deal from going ahead. We know that\npeople in McCain's office have also worked as EADS lobbyists. At least one\nlobbied for EADS while working for McCain. Finally, we have the GAO document, which\naccuses the Air Force of favoritism and bias, yet doesn't cite any rationale or\nmotive for this bias. There's really just one.

So far, no one has been able to connect these four data\npoints and prove that McCain and his lobbyist associates pushed the Air Force\ninto actively favoring the Northrop/EADS plane. McCain's office has very\nskillfully maintained plausible deniability.\"

That's a very remarkable -- and politically explosive -- analysis. Aboulafia appears to be asking: 1) Did McCain steer the KC-X contract requirements to favor Northrop Grumman's bid, and 2) Were McCain's actions improperly influenced by EADS lobbyists?