The Lacuna Project

lacuna (n.) a gap in a record where something should be

Independent research. Not affiliated with any government, agency, or company.

Company

General Dynamics

Documented positions

  • James N. Mattis: Retired from the U.S. Marine Corps, May 2013, U.S. Department of Defense (earlier – 2013-05); Director, General Dynamics (2013-08-07 – 2017); Secretary of Defense (ethics agreement 5 Jan 2017: resign from General Dynamics on confirmation; one-year recusal), U.S. Department of Defense (2017 – 2019-01-01); Director (re-elected), General Dynamics (2019-08-07 – present)

Documented money flows

Findings that rest on exhibits naming this entity

  • DEF-1.3: The Congressional Research Service reported that five companies received 30 percent of Department of Defense contract obligations in fiscal year 2024, out of $445 billion: Lockheed Martin, RTX, Boeing, Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics.
  • DEF-1.9: In fiscal years 2021 to 2025 Lockheed Martin, RTX and Northrop Grumman each paid more in share repurchases and dividends than they reported spending on company-funded research and development, in company-wide figures that include commercial work.
  • DEF-1.10: The original Lobbying Disclosure Act quarterly reports for 2019 to 2025, summed, show Lockheed Martin, RTX, Boeing, General Dynamics and Northrop Grumman together reporting $519.7 million in lobbying, between $68.9 million and $81.2 million a year, in company-wide figures for all issues.
  • INF-1.3: Proxy statements filed from January to September 2026 list at least one of Vanguard, BlackRock and State Street as holding more than 5 percent of the common stock of each of 17 companies: eight media, five pharmaceutical and four defense. The listed stakes run from 5.1 to 14.9 percent, and 14 of the 17 proxies cite at least one Schedule 13G filed between January and April 2024, so the percentages describe holdings on dates from 31 December 2023 to 30 June 2026.
  • DEF-4.7: Seven officials are documented moving between Defense Department posts and the boards or payrolls of defense contractors in dated steps from 2009 to 2021, under the Obama, Trump and Biden administrations. Five of them (Lynn, Shanahan, Esper, Mattis and Austin) came to senior Pentagon posts from contractor roles, and four (Work, Pawlikowski, Mattis and Austin) took contractor board seats after leaving DoD posts or the armed services.
  • DEF-4.8: Four officials who came to the Pentagon from contractor roles stated their recusal terms in their own agreements: Shanahan (Boeing), for the duration of his service; Esper (Raytheon), one year, with a continuing limit tied to his deferred compensation; Mattis (General Dynamics), one year; and Austin (Raytheon Technologies), four years. The DoD Inspector General investigated 2019 allegations that Shanahan promoted Boeing and did not substantiate any of them.
  • DEF-4.9: The fiscal year 2025 donor lists of the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Center for a New American Security name Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics, Boeing and RTX among their corporate donors, in published dollar bands.

Exhibits naming this entity

  • Exhibit 340 2026-11-09. U.S. Department of the Treasury (USAspending.gov API): USAspending query: DoD contract obligations by recipient, FY2019 to FY2025
  • Exhibit 341 2026-11-09. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (data.sec.gov): SEC XBRL company facts for Lockheed Martin, RTX, Boeing, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman
  • Exhibit 342 2026-11-09. U.S. Congress (Lobbying Disclosure Act database, lda.gov): Lobbying Disclosure Act query: quarterly reports naming five prime contractors, 2019 to 2025
  • Exhibit 361 5 January 2017. James N. Mattis to DoD Designated Agency Ethics Official; posted by U.S. Office of Government Ethics: Ethics agreement of James N. Mattis, nominee for Secretary of Defense
  • Exhibit 366 7 August 2013. General Dynamics Corporation: General Dynamics press release: elects James N. Mattis to Board of Directors (Form 8-K Ex. 99.1)
  • Exhibit 367 10 January 2017. General Dynamics Corporation: General Dynamics Form 8-K, Item 5.02 (10 January 2017)
  • Exhibit 368 7 August 2019. General Dynamics Corporation: General Dynamics Form 8-K, Item 5.02 (7 August 2019)
  • Exhibit 372 FY2025 (1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025). Center for Strategic and International Studies: CSIS Our Donors: Corporations (Fiscal Year 2025)
  • Exhibit 373 FY2025. Center for a New American Security: CNAS Supporters (contributions 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025)
  • Exhibit 974 27 March 2026. General Dynamics Corporation: General Dynamics Corporation definitive proxy statement (DEF 14A), security ownership table