More political fallout

I discussed earlier the political fallout for elected officals as the BRAC process moves forward. Here's another example of a senator and governor in Missouri taking heat for the proposed base closures in their state.

Blogs covering BRAC

Here's another Maine-based blog operated by a consortium of local newspapers dedicated to coverage of the BRAC process locally.

BRAC Commission cancels hearings in Missouri and Utah

Reuters has a report headlined "Base panel cancels hearing, cites data delay." Excerpt:

The Base Realignment and Closure Commission said on Friday it would postpone its first regional hearings set for Monday because of delays by the Pentagon in providing crucial information to communities threatened with military cutbacks. ...

Congressional Democrats and Republicans pressed the Pentagon again on Friday for more data on specific base closing recommendations, saying they could only get access to classified data that could not be used in a public forum.

"Communities were promised an open and honest dialogue with full and unfettered access to all of the data," Texas Republican Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn wrote in a letter to Rumsfeld.

The Defense Department has made available certain classified materials, but only to members of Congress and their staffs with proper security clearances. The documents may only be viewed in a special reading room and the information may not be copied, removed or used in public presentations.

Sens. Joseph Lieberman, a Connecticut Democrat and Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, said in a joint statement they would soon determine whether a court subpoena was necessary to bring forth more documents on base closure.

Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station

A local newspaper in New York has an article headlined "Base findings baffle supporters; officials wait for Pentagon to declassify info". Excerpt:

Among the many things the Niagara Affairs Military Council wants to know is why the local air base is on a list to shut down and send its tankers to a Maine base that even the Pentagon agrees ranks below the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station.The information about the base closure selection process, which hasn’t been released to the general public but was obtained by the Gazette this week, ranks bases on the Department of Defense’s Base Realignment and Closure list based on criteria including the condition of infrastructure and the troops’ mission capabilities. The Niagara Falls base ranked 119 out of 154, while the Bangor, Maine, base ranked 123.

Portsmouth

The Portsmouth Herald has an editorial headlined "The truth about base closings must be revealed." Excerpt:

Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe is correct to go after, with a subpoena if necessary, the data used by the Pentagon to justify closing the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.

First, the data were required to be open by May 23 according to the enabling legislation that created the base realignment and closure process. It’s vital to make the data public to prepare for a July 6 meeting of the BRAC commissioners in Boston.

Overseas Basing Commission Controversy

While the BRAC process is filled with intricacies, intrigue, and controversy, one of the more notable controversies has been the clash between the Overseas Basing Commission (OBC) and the Pentagon. The Washington Post reported the clash in an article headlined "Report Critical of Rumsfeld Is Pulled After DOD Protest." Excerpt:

A government commission studying overseas military bases sent Congress a report that included criticism of Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld's strategy, then removed the document from the commission Web site after the Pentagon complained that it divulged classified information.

The congressionally appointed panel contends that the 262-page report is based only on public sources, and several commission officials say they believe the Defense Department was annoyed because their conclusions include harsh criticism of some elements of Rumsfeld's plan for streamlining the military. ...

The commission chairman, Al Cornella, a Republican, said in an interview that he was trying to cooperate but that he had not agreed to have the Pentagon clear the report in advance. "The commission is confident that everything in our report was obtained from unclassified sources or settings," he said.

Google has a cached copy of the controversial report.

The Political Component to BRAC

One of the more fascinating components to the BRAC process is the political machinations at work. In Pennsylvania, the state Democratic Party is contending that Senator Rick Santorum is to blame for the proposed closure of thirteen of the state's bases. A new senator from North Dakota is also taking heat for the proposed closure of a base in that state. As the BRAC process continues, it will be interesting to observe the political fallout for elected officials who have bases proposed to be closed in their states.

Pentagon sends more data to Congress

The Washington Times has an article headlined "Officials fear for security of base data." Excerpt:

The Pentagon yesterday sent Congress an unprecedented classified database on every military base worldwide that could be a handbook for future attacks if it fell into the hands of al Qaeda or other terror groups, U.S. and congressional officials said. ...

The Pentagon sent the data after 21 U.S. senators, including Maine's two Republicans, Susan Collins and Olympia J. Snowe, complained in a letter to President Bush last Friday. Miss Collins said yesterday that the new data are not helpful because they are classified. "This means that the documents cannot be used at public hearings, public meetings, or at meetings that are not held in a classified facility by people with security clearances," she said.

UPDATE: Here is the Pentagon's press release.

Proposed base closures in Connecticut and Maine

Earlier this week, the Chairman of the BRAC Commission visited the submarine base in Connecticut. The AP has a report headlined "Connecticut makes case to save Groton sub base". A retired submariner has more here and here.

Also, last week, Chairman Principi visited Portsmouth Naval Shipyard here in Maine. The AP has a report headlined "Mainers meet with BRAC Chairman." Excerpt:

Anthony Principi, the chairman of the commission that is reviewing the Defense Department's recommendations to eliminate 7,000 jobs at Maine's military bases, agreed Friday that the Pentagon needs to provide more justification for its decisions. However, Principi told the state's congressional delegation and Gov. John Baldacci that legitimate security concerns may prevent the Pentagon from being as forthcoming as political leaders would like.