GekeVenn: L3

L3 Technologies is a company based in New York City that produces surveillance and reconnaissance systems, as well as aerospace instrumentation. Hardware produced by L3 is on the Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station.

The third “L” in the company's name stands for Lehman Brothers, with which its two founders, Lanza and LaPenta, were in partnership. L3 has acquired 27 companies over the last 20 years to become one of the top ten government contractors in terms of size.

Note that in-house lobbyist D'Anna Tindal had a prior history of military appropriations: in 1984, Tindal became the defense appropriations liaison for US Representative Charlie Wilson, the member of Congress who tripled CIA appropriations to weaponize Mujahideen rebels in Afghanistan during the 1980s. Wilson's single-handed increases for the CIA budget happened several times, including his response to a request from CIA officer Gust Avrakotos, who illegally lobbied Wilson for $50 million. Wilson has been criticized for supplying aid to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who later joined the Taliban and has been accused of serious war crimes. Tindal listed one of her job duties in Congress as having to “liase with lobbyists, contractors, Pentagon, State Department.”

Note also that L3 lobbyist Stephanie Kostro, in addition to working for the State Department, also worked for five years in the Defense Department as a foreign affairs specialist.

Another L3 lobbyist, Linda Daschle, is married to Tom Daschle, a retired Democratic Congressman who also works as a lobbyist (though not for L3).

Lastly, L3 lobbyist Arch Galloway worked previously as the senior defense policy advisor for Jeff Sessions when he was a member of the Senate.

FAA = Federal Aviation Administration
AETC = Air Education and Training Command
SA = Strategic Analysis
CXO = Chandra X-ray Observatory
DLA = Defense Logistics Agency