Ensuring an award to EADS was a factor, according to my sources, behind two of the past decade's most notable federal corruption prosecutions, those of Siegelman and former Air Force Assistant Secretary Darleen Druyun. An independent review is the primary focus of my work with the start-up Justice Integrity Project.Prosecutors dispute any political motive in either investigation.
In 2006, federal authorities working through Canary's office convicted Siegelman, regarded by my political sources as less adept than his Republican rival Bob Riley in the congressional and international clout needed to ensure an EADS victory and an Alabama reassembly plant.
Riley had been a leader in House military appropriations before narrowly defeating Siegelman in 2002 gubernatorial election. As a congressman and then as governor, Riley cultivated contacts with Russian raw material suppliers and France-based manufacturers who are major advocates of EADS.
Also, the federal authorities won a corruption conviction against Druyun, building on initial investigative work by Boeing's opponents in the competitive intelligence community. Earlier, Druyun had helped Boeing obtain highly favorable terms on Air Force tanker leases. She then received a $250,000 per year job at Boeing in 2003 after her retirement from the Air Force.
Her conviction helped overturn the initial Air Force award and reopen bidding, which is still continuing with this week's extension.
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