Employer
Pallas AdvisorsRobert Daigle was Director of the Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office (CAPE), stepping down in May 2019, and joined Pallas Advisors as a principal shortly after. CAPE is responsible for providing the Department independent cost estimates and alternatives. During Daigle’s tenure at CAPE, the office pushed for several multi-billion dollar acquisitions programs. Defense officials told Defense News CAPE “drove the department’s decision to procure new” F-15X instead of accelerating F-35 procurement, resulting in the Pentagon requesting $1.1 billion to buy F-15X’s from Boeing. Daigle also advocated for purchasing the $10 billion JEDI cloud computing program through a single provider, even though a number of experts raised concerns that this would create a monopoly that would not benefit the government. The attorney for Pallas’ co-founder clarified that due to ethics restrictions on former political appointees, Pallas Advisors will not be engaging in lobbying. ProPublica reported that Daigle had attended meetings in at least one Senator’s office after joining Pallas.
Pallas’ website states they “provide insight into how governments think and operate – serving as a trusted counsel for companies looking to understand and thrive in a competitive environment.”
Pallas’ website states they “provide insight into how governments think and operate – serving as a trusted counsel for companies looking to understand and thrive in a competitive environment.” Pallas’ staff includes several former Department of Defense officials, though there is little other public information about the company. The attorney for Pallas’ co-founder clarified that due to ethics restrictions on former political appointees, Pallas Advisors will not be engaging in lobbying.
Ethics laws are riddled with loopholes. Without transparency and more effective protections of the public interest the revolving door between senior Pentagon officials and officers and defense contractors may be costing American taxpayers billions.