-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Dear AT&T: If you'll roll over for us on Clipper, we will suitably incentivize yo u. /s/ The Clinton Administration I suppose most of us would consider a $4B contract a "suitable incentive." While there's probably no direct evidence of a quid pro quo, it strikes me as a bit odd that the President is personally intervening in a purely commercial deal. OTOH this is the second time Clinton has intervened in a deal with the Saudis. On the gripping hand, I don't recall anyone intervening to get business for Boeing (Peace Shield, the Saudi C3I network), McDonnell (F-15s), and so on. Can we please confine paranoia to reasonable areas -- like AT&T's sales of secure phones to the government? The U.S. government has a very long record of pushing American products against foreign competitors, such as Boeing versus Airbus. Of course, there is a quid pro quo here -- but it's Clinton reminding the Saudis about Desert Storm. --Steve Bellovin P.S. It goes without saying that I'm speaking for myself, not AT&T.