WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Elizabeth Warren sent a letter to Erich Hernandez-Baquero on June 23, 2026, requesting a four-year recusal from all matters involving Raytheon if he is confirmed for a new government role. Warren also asked him to commit to not seeking compensation from a firm tied to the Defense Department for four years after his potential service.

Hernandez-Baquero was nominated by the White House in April 2026 to serve as the Air Force's assistant secretary for space acquisition and integration. He is currently Raytheon's vice president for space intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. He joined Raytheon in 2021 following a 27-year career in the Air Force.

His ethics agreement, signed in April 2026, indicated that he would forfeit unvested restricted stock units, unvested performance stock units, and unvested stock appreciation rights after resigning from Raytheon if confirmed for the new position. In the letter, Warren wrote, "Your relationship with a defense contractor that you served for five years as a senior executive will raise concerns about the appearance of impartiality if you are confirmed in your new role."

Warren has previously sought similar ethics commitments from other officials, including Lloyd Austin and former Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown. Current federal ethics laws prevent government employees from engaging in matters concerning their former employers for one year. These laws also prohibit involvement in deals from which an employee would personally benefit financially.

Warren wrote that these laws may not fully address conflict of interest concerns, stating, "While these laws create important guardrails, they fall short of fully addressing conflict of interest concerns: they may still allow government officials to work on matters that could affect their previous employers once a one-year period and full divestiture have passed, and they can be undermined by exemptions." She added, "And they still allow officials to move through the revolving door by accepting senior advisory roles within the defense industry or lobbying DoD." A 2023 report from Warren's office identified approximately 700 former high-ranking defense and government officials who were later employed by the top 20 defense contractors.