House panel opens probe of Navarro over $646M ventilator contract cancellation

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Source: The Hill

A House committee will investigate the White House over contract negotiations related to the COVID-19 pandemic response after the federal government abruptly canceled a $646 million contract for ventilators on Monday.

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) told CNBC on Monday that the Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy would investigate contracts negotiated by White House trade adviser Peter Navarro and said that the contract represented an example of a company taking advantage of the federal government with Navarro's help.

The company in question, Philips Respironics, confirmed the end of its contract with the federal government on Monday, CNBC reported.

"Under the management of Peter Navarro, Senior Advisor to President Trump, the administration was taken advantage of by Philips Respironics when negotiating the price of life-saving ventilators," Krishnamoorthi said in a statement to CNBC.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/house-panel-opens-probe-of-navarro-over-dollar646m-ventilator-contract-cancellation/ar-BB18yWLO?li=BBnb7Kz

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He'll probably ignore it like other Trump staffers have

[Leghorn21]

1. COOL

Dog this motherfucker

[iluvtennis]

2. trump will claim info is executive privilege and prevent his from testifying. nt

[Scarsdale]

3. Every one of them has

sticky fingers. I thought Jared was in charge of ventilators and other medical supplies. Did Navarro try to slip this by him?

[sandensea]

4. Someone didn't pay his bribe

And that, you do not do in the Cheeto era.

[rockfordfile]

5. good

[BumRushDaShow]

6. As a related note - I heard on the radio that Ford has finished manufacturing their last ventilators

and will now be reconverting their plants back to making cars.

Just found the story (was from Bloomberg, which that station uses for business reports) -

Ford Ends Ventilator Production After Making 50,000 for U.S.
By Keith Naughton
and Shira Stein
August 31, 2020, 1:58 PM EDT

Ford Motor Co. is ceasing production of ventilators and returning the Michigan factory where they were built to full-time auto-parts output after completing delivery of 50,000 breathing machines to the U.S. government. The automaker, which had been producing the devices in conjunction with General Electric Co., shipped its final unit Aug. 28 to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, according to Rachel McCleery, a company spokeswoman.

Ford’s Rawsonville Road plant already resumed auto-parts production in May as part of an industry-wide restart following a shutdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The ventilators were made in a separate part of the plant that didn’t affect output of auto components, including transmission oil pumps, electric battery packs and fuel pumps. The company has said its factories returned to 95% of pre-virus production by the end of the second quarter after shutting down its U.S. plants in the spring in a bid to halt the spread of Covid-19.

Detroit rival General Motors Co. and its partner Ventec Life Systems Inc. also are scheduled to complete delivery of 30,000 ventilators to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services this week, Ventec Chief Strategy Officer Chris Brooks said in an interview. Ventec is taking over production at GM’s Kokomo, Indiana, factory, the automaker said earlier this month.

/snip

Ford will continue to produce personal protective equipment and said it plans to deliver 10 million face masks to school districts across the U.S.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-31/ford-ends-ventilator-production-after-making-50-000-for-u-s

That last sentence above - I had no idea they were doing that. Not a clue. I wonder if the school systems know this (although most around here are either all-virtual or "hybrid". Very few if any "in person" ).