President to announce submarine shipyard plan in Sparrows Point

By Maya Ellison · Reporting from Detroit · October 6, 2026

This timing is no coincidence. It is a roadmap for how the modern American state is auctioned to the highest bidder. On October 6, 2026, the U.S. Navy handed Anduril a $2.9 billion contract to build submarines.

Days earlier, the Pentagon named Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey to Project Meridian. This task force identifies weapons for future conflicts. When the people writing war requirements also sell the weapons, the public gets robbed.

This is not innovation. It is corporate capture. Concentrated wealth buys concentrated power. This story uses Silicon Valley software and Navy steel.

The revolving door is now a highway

The Pentagon calls Project Meridian a study on future wars. The group includes Elon Musk and Newt Gingrich. Emil Michael of the Department of Defense told CNBC there is "really nothing to see here."

There is everything to see here. While Luckey sits on a task force, his company collects billions in taxpayer funds. This mirrors the Palantir Technologies growth from years ago. Venture-backed firms use deep political ties to secure high-value contracts.

The circle of influence is tight. Marc Andreessen and Blake Masters joined the Pentagon’s defense policy board this summer. They are the architects of a new military-industrial complex.

FEC records show Luckey maxes out donations to Republican campaigns and WinRed. He is a primary investor in the political machinery that signs his checks.

A mirage of jobs at Sparrows Point

Donald Trump uses the ghost of American industry to sell this deal. Anduril is investing $3.7 billion to build "Arsenal-2" at Sparrows Point, Maryland. This 2-million-square-foot facility sits on the former Bethlehem Steel site.

For my generation, these sites are monuments to broken promises. The project claims it will create 3,100 permanent jobs. But look at the method.

Anduril President Chris Brose told CNBC this is an opportunity to "reimagine" the shipyard. In tech-speak, "reimagine" means "automate." The goal is to replace skilled labor with software and robotics.

We saw this during the Financial Crisis of 2008. The government saved private firms while workers were left with the wreckage. The promise of 3,100 jobs is a lure.

The real winner is the venture capital class. They get a $2.9 billion guarantee from the Navy. Meanwhile, workers must trust a company that views human labor as a "luxury."

The capacity excuse and the old pattern

The strongest case for this deal is necessity. Fox News reports that the Navy must ramp up submarine production. The argument is simple: Anduril can build faster than legacy shipbuilders.

This is a lie. We lack the will to invest in a public industrial base. Using a "capacity crisis" to bypass bidding is a classic move.

This mechanism appeared during the COVID-19 pandemic response. Oversight was tossed aside to favor specific corporate partners. This arrangement mirrors the First Trump Administration.

The shared mechanism is the blurring of public office and private profit. By appointing industry leaders to government task forces to steer procurement contracts, the administration ensures that the "solution" to every national problem is a contract for a friend.

The long record shows that privatizing national security crushes the people. We get inflated prices and sole-source monopolies. Jobs disappear the moment a new algorithm is written.

The "Arsenal-2" facility will be a high-tech fortress for capital extraction. Anduril will use Project Meridian to secure more sole-source contracts. The 3,100 promised jobs will likely be low-wage contract work.

This is the new ledger: public risk, private profit, and a working class used as a photo op.

President to announce submarine shipyard plan in Sparrows Point

The revolving door is now a highway

A mirage of jobs at Sparrows Point

The capacity excuse and the old pattern

Sources