USAF’s Response: Responding to the Pentagon inspector general’s May 20 report on contracting irregularities associated with the Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team (see above), Air Force spokesman Lt Col Mike Paoli said the following: “Our leaders take the report’s findings seriously and have acted on every recommendation provided by the DOD Inspector General’s office.” Paoli said Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne and Acquisition Executive Sue Payton have communicated with all USAF senior leaders and everyone in the contracting career field, on “the importance of following established contracting regulations and the critical need to avoid any real or perceived appearance of impropriety or favoritism.” The Air Force, beyond the IG’s recommendations, has created new procedures to enhance contracting oversight, such as “mandatory legal reviews of key source selection documentation and expansion of the ombudsman program as an avenue to voice acquisition concerns,” he said. The bottom line, Paoli said, is that USAF is committed to “contracting processes that are fair, lawful, and provide the American people the best value for their tax dollar.”
Dick Cheney’s Legacy with the Air Force
Nov. 6, 2025
Dick Cheney, who died Nov. 3 at 84, is best remembered by most Americans as among the most powerful Vice Presidents in history, a consummate Washington insider who had previously served in the Nixon administration, was Chief of Staff for President Gerald Ford, a Congressman for a decade, and Secretary…
