March 16, 2008
U.S. TANKER AWARD: NO DEFENSE?
Air Force
Decision Undercuts Security
By JOHN B. LARSON
The Air Force had the option of awarding the aerial tanker
program to a team led by Boeing that would have included
Connecticut's Pratt & Whitney and Hamilton Sundstrand. It is
astonishing and outrageous that in the midst of a recession and
at a time when our nation is at war, the Bush administration has
chosen to outsource our national security.
Our national security and economy are at a crossroads, each
affecting the other and both facing major hurdles over the years
to come. When given the opportunity to provide a significant
boost to both our national security and our economy, we should
seize it. Instead, it was squandered. The Air Force had a chance
to place our nation's security in the industrious hands that
have maintained the dominance of America's military for over 200
years.
This is not about instituting an isolationist policy. But it is
the responsibility of Congress and the U.S. military to consider
what is in the national security interest of our country. It is
undeniably in our interest to sustain the critical mass of
highly trained and highly skilled workers in the aerospace
industry. Congress has a constitutional obligation to intervene
on behalf of this vital security question.
The Air Force defends its decision by saying that it was based
on providing the best "value" to American taxpayers and the U.S.
military. Ignoring the effect of this award on our workers and
critical supply chain, however, is not in the best interest of
our country. I believe that the best value for the Air Force and
our nation is to sustain and build a talented domestic workforce
with all of the skills we will need in the future.
The administration and the Pentagon cannot make these types of
military decisions in a vacuum. If our core defense
manufacturing industries close their doors, who will sustain our
military should a crisis arise? Who will the country mobilize to
propel the mightiest air force in the world? It is extremely
shortsighted to entrust our national security and the
preparedness of our armed services to foreign companies and the
governments that subsidize them.
As a member of the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, I am
keenly aware of how globalization is changing the way America
does business. However, national security shouldn't be about the
best bargain — it should be about the solvency of our nation's
future and our ability to defend ourselves.
I stand with a broad, bipartisan coalition in Congress that is
supporting Boeing's decision to challenge the Air Force's
contract award. Members of the Connecticut congressional
delegation joined me in requesting a debriefing from the Air
Force on its process for awarding this contract, which we were
given.
I am still unconvinced by the Air Force's reasoning. There
remain a lot of questions the Air Force needs to answer about
how it made its decision and whether the process was fair and
equitable.
I am confident that through the process of appeal and
investigation, the best "value" aircraft will become abundantly
clear and the fact that we cannot afford to outsource our
national security will be paramount. Even in a changing world,
some things cannot be for sale.
I am reminded of the great words of President Franklin D.
Roosevelt, who saw war on the nation's horizon. Understanding
the importance to the country of having a robust industry and a
strong military, he said, "We have the men, the skill, the
wealth, and above all, the will" to bring government, industry
and labor together to fulfill America's obligation to defend the
world.
Sad is the day that the United States loses the will to invest
in our defense industries here at home. We risk more than our
wealth and skilled workforce — we risk losing the very notion of
America's independence.
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