By Emelie Rutherford
With the threat of a congressional blockade of his confirmation looming, the nominee for Army acquisition chief told lawmakers yesterday he will likely play a “strong role” in ensuring an Army truck competition is on the right path.
Malcolm O’Neill, President Barack Obama’s nominee to be assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics, and technology, was careful in answering questions about the Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) contract during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC).
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) determined on Monday the Army erred in how it evaluated FMTV proposals from BAE Systems, Navistar Defense LLC, and Oshkosh Corp. [OSK] before granting the contract to Oshkosh (Defense Daily, Dec. 15). The Army is reviewing the GAO’s decision, which upheld contract protests by BAE and Navistar in two narrow areas: the capability evaluation and the evaluation of Navistar’s past performance.
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) asked O’Neill yesterday if he would, if confirmed, apply guidelines spelled out in the Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009 when reevaluating the FMTV selection process.
“I certainly am inclined to be very positive about that approach when relooking at FMTV, but,…I am not privy to the decisions being made by the Army at this time in response to the GAO sustaining of the protest,” O’Neill said. While he had not been briefed in detail on the FMTV situation by the Army, the nominee said, he had read about it in newspapers.
O’Neill told Burr: “I think it would be a good time, if confirmed, for me to play a strong role, depending upon how quickly a resolution of this matter needs to be done.”
Before BAE and Navistar received the GAO ruling in their favor, the two U.S. senators from Texas, where BAE has built FMTVs for 17 years, threatened to delay O’Neill’s confirmation because of their concerns regarding the Army’s award of the vehicle rebuy contract to Oshkosh, which they said “must be reconsidered.” (Defense Daily, Dec. 9)
Texas Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison said in an Dec. 4 letter to Army Secretary John McHugh that they had “numerous questions regarding this contract, as well as the Army’s overall tactical vehicle program” that they wanted answered.
Any single senator can place a “hold” on a presidential nomination and stall its congressional confirmation.
Cornyn never placed a hold on O’Neill’s confirming, “but he is keeping his options open,” his spokesman said.
Hutchison also is waiting to say whether she will support O’Neill’s nomination, a congressional aide said.
Hutchison shared multiple concerns with the FMTV contract with Pentagon acquisition chief Ashton Carter on Wednesday, and yesterday was hoping to speak with both McHugh and O’Neill. She is waiting to hear during the conversations that her concerns with the FMTV process are allayed and that she can be confident in the Army’s actions following the GAO decision, the aide said.