Jacobs, Warren Call Out Consulting Firms For Work On Behalf of Foreign Governments
U.S. Representative Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), a member of the House Armed Services and House Foreign Affairs Committees, and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent letters to five Beltway consulting firms requesting information about their work for and on behalf of foreign governments following reporting by the Washington Post revealing that, more than 500 retired U.S. military personal – including scores of generals and admirals” have taken jobs with foreign governments. In the letter, the lawmakers request information about the employees of their firms that have worked on behalf of foreign governments with a history of repression and human rights abuses and how the firms ensure its officials are not involved in illegal or inappropriate activities that harm U.S. national security interests.
The letters were sent to five firms, all of which reportedly hired former military officials: The Cohen Group, Booz Allen Hamilton, Jones Group International & Ironhand Security, IronNet Cybersecurity and Fairfax National Security Solutions, LLC.
The new information about these firms’ use of former military leaders “was an alarming finding, raising questions about whether these former U.S. military officials and the firms that hire them are working in the best interests of the United States government and its citizens, or in the interests of some of the world’s worst regimes,” the members of Congress wrote.
The investigation by The Washington Post and the Project On Government Oversight found that between April 2010 and August 2020, “the State Department issued over 500 waivers to retiring servicemembers, allowing them to take emoluments to work on behalf of foreign interests.” The trend of American servicemembers taking “lucrative” roles with foreign governments has accelerated over the past decade, as foreign governments work to leverage American expertise and “political clout.” Many of the countries hiring former U.S. servicemembers have committed appalling human rights abuses, and these relationships may undermine a key plank of U.S. foreign policy that places restrictions on assistance to foreign governments accused of human rights violations. By funneling U.S. expertise through ‘consulting’ firms that collect six- and seven-figure paychecks, foreign governments have been able to build up their military forces with U.S. assistance and without ongoing oversight from the U.S. government.
In the letter the lawmakers highlighted that these arrangements benefit foreign governments by providing them with soft power and influence in Washington. Many high-ranking former generals, admirals, and other servicemembers have boosted the interests of these foreign governments without disclosing their financial ties.
“The emoluments clause of the constitution requires retired military officers to receive congressional approval before accepting compensation from any foreign government. This is one of our country’s founding anti-corruption provisions to “limit foreign influence on federal officers.”’ continued the lawmakers.