Bush security adviser helped firm land lobbying gig for Chinese oil co.
The bid by state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corporation to purchase U.S. oil and gas producer Unocal has raised hackles among some national-security types. So it may seem odd that James C. Langdon Jr., the chair of President Bush’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board — a group with security clearance greater than even members of Congress — would meet with CNOOC to drum up lobbying business for his law firm. Odd but true: Langdon, a major Bush fund-raiser, met last winter with reps from CNOOC seeking lobbying work for his law firm, Akin Gump. An Akin Gump spokesflack notes that Langdon has since removed himself from the firm’s dealings with CNOOC. But Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.) promises to raise questions about Langdon’s involvement at tomorrow’s hearings of the House Armed Services Committee on the national-security implications of the CNOOC bid.
