Military satellite makers were denied computer parts because the manufacturer feared the sales would hurt a Japanese deal.

Hughes thinks the contract serves it well, too, despite the added burden the satellite maker is assuming.

The Justice Department is investigating whether top officials of Intelsat received payments from satellite makers through consultants.

No one - from satellite makers to Congress to the White House - can say for sure what China has actually done with information passed along.

The new sense of competitive urgency extends to satellite operators as well as satellite makers.

But the satellite makers wanted a broader decision that made the Commerce Department the primary licensing authority for virtually all satellites.

Or, because retailing may be wiped off the face of the earth, invest in Orbital Sciences, a satellite maker, he says.

But the welfare of the satellite makers also weighed heavily on the Administration.

It made China happy, and American satellite makers very, very happy.

Unfortunately for Mr. Clinton, those satellite makers numbered among his most generous political donors.