By Jim Small | Arizona Mirror
The Office of Inspector General for the Department of Defense will investigate a $400 million contract to construct a border wall in Arizona that was given to a North Dakota company that President Donald Trump advocated for, and whose owner gave Arizona Sen. Martha McSally’s 2018 campaign the maximum allowed under the law.
Photo by Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
The OIG investigation was prompted by a letter from Rep. Dennie Thompson, D-Miss., who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee. Thompson noted that the company, North Dakota-based Fisher Sand & Gravel, had never been awarded a government construction contract, didn’t “meet the operational requirements of U.S. Customs and Border Protection” and may have been selected after “inappropriate influence” by the White House.
In 2018, the company’s CEO, Tommy Fisher, contributed $5,400 to McSally’s 2018 U.S. Senate campaign, the most legally allowed for the 2018 campaign cycle. McSally lost narrowly to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema, but was appointed to the Senate by Gov. Doug Ducey to fill out the remainder of the term that the late John McCain was elected to serve.
Fisher also gave to other Arizona congressional Republicans in 2018, giving $4,200 to Rep. Debbie Lesko and $2,700 each to Andy Biggs and David Schweikert.
