The congressman tapped by President Barack Obama to be the next Army secretary had, before his nomination, requested $40 million worth of earmarks be added to the defense appropriations bill, The Washington Times reported.

Among the requests made by Rep. John McHugh, R-N.Y., was more than $8 million for Fort Drum in his home state.

He also called for $4.7 million for Lockheed Martin, which the paper said has contributed $35,000 to his campaigns over the years, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Rockwell Collins, Inc., a defense contractor with a facility in upstate New York would receive $2 million under the requests, the Times reported. Rockwell Collins until this year had been a client of PMA Group lobbying firm, which closed after it was the target of an FBI investigation into campaign finance violations. PMA’s political action committee, its employees and its clients gave $160,250 to McHugh’s congressional campaigns, the Times wrote, citing the Center for Responsive Politics.

"The congressman has never let a contribution influence any vote or action as an elected official, and he stands ready to respond to any questions the Senate may put before him," spokeswoman Stephanie Valle told the paper, referring to the confirmation process.

McHugh, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, is generally regarded as a modest requester of earmarks, the Times noted, but said his requests are garnering greater scrutiny given his nomination as Army secretary.