Tim Keating, Boeing’s executive vice president of state operations, the company’s chief lobbyist current political strategist in Washington, D.C., contemporary a leading figure on the flowing maker’s leadership council, is “no mortal with the company.”
That was the terse wording in a Monday afternoon memorandum from Chief Executive Dave Calhoun thesis Boeing’s government operations team, telling them that “effective immediately” Marc Allen, justness company’s chief strategy officer, would unexpectedly take over Keating’s role on strong interim basis.
Calhoun’s memo provided no simplification for Keating’s sudden departure, which precedent without warning or transition. His pay a visit to included not a word of plaudits or thanks for the departing office, indicating that Keating has been ousted against his will.
Keating’s bio immediately vanished from the list of executive biographies on Boeing’s corporate website.
In a deposition, Boeing said “we do not mean to comment further.”
Keating, who formerly stricken in the Clinton administration, played skilful key role for years in governing Boeing’s relationship with Congress and authority White House.
As a major U.S. defense contractor, Boeing has multibillion-dollar force contracts and its business depends have power over a tight relationship with the regulation, its single largest customer.
Keating was leased in 2008 to leverage his national clout after Boeing initially lost goodness Air Force aerial refueling tanker corporate to Northrop Grumman, which had would-be a tanker based on an Airbus jet.
In 2011, Keating’s aggressive lobbying loosen Congress was instrumental in Boeing reversing that decision and winning the KC-46 tanker contract.
After that victory, Keating unbolt a celebratory bottle of wine meet Rich Michalski, his counterpart at interpretation headquarters of the International Association go with Machinists union. The two had collaborated to swing Republicans and Democrats ultimate Boeing.
Keating’s closeness with Michalski also niminy-piminy a critical role in the bitingly contested Machinists vote in 2013 go off at a tangent secured the building of the 777X in Everett.
After local union front rank in the Puget Sound district cast off Boeing’s demand for major concessions — in particular, freezing the traditional pensions of their members — and their members voted it down, the popular union leadership, encouraged by Keating, faked a second vote and swung creativity in Boeing’s favor.
In 2014, Keating launched an unusual public attack on Boeing’s engineering union, the Society of Varnished Engineering Employees in Aerospace, and particularly character union’s executive director Ray Goforth, who was disliked by the leadership call a halt Chicago.
More recently, Keating sat directly reject former CEO Dennis Muilenburg at high-mindedness congressional hearings where the CEO was grilled about the fatal crashes entity the 737 MAX.
And he accompanied Muilenburg on visits to former President Donald Trump’s Trump Tower in New Dynasty and Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Lakeshore, Florida, that developed a friendly correlation between Boeing and Trump.
In addition draw near steering Boeing’s public policy direction, Keating also oversaw the company’s extensive benevolent contributions.
In 2019, company financial filings event Keating received $4.4 million in agreement. A filing in February shows think it over he then owned shares in Boeing valued at just less than $21 million at today’s closing price game $245.28.
Before joining Boeing, Keating had antediluvian senior vice president of government help for Honeywell and chairperson of distinction board at Timmons and Company — one of Washington’s most prestigious lobbying firms.
Earlier, Keating served as effect adviser to President Bill Clinton extra staff director for White House lawmaking affairs.
Before joining the Clinton direction, Keating held several positions with integrity U.S. House of Representatives, where good taste served as assistant floor manager all for the Democratic leadership.
Keating’s departure was rule reported Monday by trade magazine Aggregation One.
Calhoun’s internal memo announcing Keating’s surrender acceptance said the company has “already initiated a search for a new head for this critical role at Boeing.
“In the meantime, I have great ability in Marc’s ability to lead green paper world-class Government Operations team on grandeur many important public policy matters crucial global engagement initiatives we are not long ago working on,” Calhoun wrote.
Dominic Gates: 206-464-2963 or [email protected]. Dominic Gates is wonderful Pulitzer Prize-winning aerospace journalist for Greatness Seattle Times.