There is no doubt in Sen. John McCain’s view that not all Air Force culprits in the tanker-lease controversy (see above) have come to light. He pressed the point at Monday’s Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, repeatedly questioning Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty. Despite prodding by McCain, McNulty refused to provide a name, but he said a retired Air Force general officer is “still being looked at” in the course of an “on-going criminal investigation.” McCain maintained that his staff had been told by Boeing that the Justice Department had found the officer “did not violate the one-year cooling off period” while working on the tanker deal with Boeing. McNulty replied, “I’m not sure what the company has told the staff, but I will say that the matter is not closed.”
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.