The Lacuna Project

lacuna (n.) a gap in a record where something should be

Independent research. Not affiliated with any government, agency, or company.

Person

Patrick M. Shanahan

Documented positions

  • Patrick M. Shanahan: Various positions, last Senior Vice President for Supply Chain and Operations, Boeing (1986-03 – 2017-06); Deputy Secretary of Defense (confirmed 18 Jul 2017; began 19 Jul 2017); Acting Secretary from 1 Jan 2019, U.S. Department of Defense (2017-07-19 – present)

Findings that rest on exhibits naming this entity

  • DEF-4.7: Seven officials are documented moving between Defense Department posts and the boards or payrolls of defense contractors in dated steps from 2009 to 2021, under the Obama, Trump and Biden administrations. Five of them (Lynn, Shanahan, Esper, Mattis and Austin) came to senior Pentagon posts from contractor roles, and four (Work, Pawlikowski, Mattis and Austin) took contractor board seats after leaving DoD posts or the armed services.
  • DEF-4.8: Four officials who came to the Pentagon from contractor roles stated their recusal terms in their own agreements: Shanahan (Boeing), for the duration of his service; Esper (Raytheon), one year, with a continuing limit tied to his deferred compensation; Mattis (General Dynamics), one year; and Austin (Raytheon Technologies), four years. The DoD Inspector General investigated 2019 allegations that Shanahan promoted Boeing and did not substantiate any of them.

Exhibits naming this entity

  • Exhibit 356 25 April 2019. DoD Office of Inspector General: Report of Investigation: Mr. Patrick M. Shanahan, Acting Secretary of Defense (DODIG-2019-082)