Congress scrutinized this CEO's company 6 years ago. He's now a major political donor.
CBSN
Washington — During President Trump's first term, an Ohio company was admonished by Republicans and Democrats in Congress after an audit claimed it made millions in excess profit from federal defense contracts.
Facing bipartisan frustration, TransDigm Group Inc. eventually of its own accord paid the money back. Yet after another review in 2021 outlined similar concerns, the company did not voluntarily refund millions of dollars in question. Since then, campaign finance records show the company's CEO Kevin Stein has donated to candidates from both major political parties and gave more than $300,000 to the National Republican Congressional Committee earlier this year as Mr. Trump and many others within the GOP sharply criticized what they viewed as waste in government.
"Both sides should be screaming from the rooftops about this," William Hartung, a defense spending expert at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft think tank, said about TransDigm's business practices which he views as having taken advantage of a dysfunctional system.
