FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 13, 2026
Media Contact: Melissa Garriga | [email protected] | 228-990-4168
CODEPINK Activists Shut Down Northrop Grumman CEO, Demand: "Stop Making a Killing Off Killing!"
WASHINGTON, D.C. — CODEPINK activists disrupted Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy Warden during the Axios "Building America's Competitive Advantage" forum, condemning the defense giant’s role in deadly U.S. military campaigns and surging profits amid soaring taxpayer costs.
“Kathy Warden is making a killing off killing people and destroying the planet,” said CODEPINK organizer Olivia DiNucci. “While shareholders see their wealth skyrocket, Northrop's weapons are being used to bomb Iran, Gaza, and Lebanon. Our Pentagon budget balloons so military contractors get rich off war while our people die from poverty.”
DiNucci added: “The war in Iran and the genocide in Gaza are opposed by over 80% of the world. The Department of War and these weapons manufacturers hide behind 'research and innovation,' but this is about death and destruction.”
The disruptions forced the panel to take an intermission, and the activists were removed from the forum.
Northrop Grumman’s $2 billion B-2 stealth bomber costs $150,000 per flight hour. It was central to recent U.S. strikes on Iran, in which the human cost was underscored on the first day of bombing by the Minab School massacre, which killed 73 boys, 47 girls, and 26 female teachers. Northrop and other defense contractors have donated millions to think tanks that actively advocated for those attacks.
As the world’s sixth-largest weapons manufacturer, Northrop saw profits surge when the Iran war began, and its stock hit an all-time high. The company also recently secured over $4.5 billion to accelerate production of the B-21, a nuclear-capable stealth bomber, and supplies Israel with Longbow missile systems for Apache helicopters, laser targeting for fighter jets, and Sa'ar 5 warships, all of which have been used in the genocide in Gaza.
CEO Kathy Warden earns an estimated $24 million annually. “Our Pentagon budget skyrockets so military contractors get rich off war while our people die from being poor,” DiNucci said.
More and more people are rejecting the idea that we need such an exorbitant Pentagon budget. Check out CODEPINK’s recent Cut the Pentagon poll results to see where people would rather spend our tax dollars.
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