Chambliss To Fight To Restore F-22
By John M. Doyle 
Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) continues to vow a fight on Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ plans to halt the F-22 Raptor program at 187 of the stealth jet fighters.
In an April 13 teleconference call with reporters, Chambliss said restoring the F-22, which is assembled at a Lockheed Martin plant employing about 2,000 in Marietta, Ga., was “by far, at the very, very top of my list” when he gets back from a congressional fact-finding trip to the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Chambliss said he was surprised when Gates announced April 6 that he was halting acquisition of the F-22 at 187 of the high-tech aircraft that cost about $140 million each.
Chambliss, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), said he knew he was in for a fight with Gates over increasing the F-22 buy, but “I didn’t think he’d cut the program.”
Chambliss continued to call Gates’ decision “purely budget-driven.” Sen. Johnny Isakson (R), Georgia’s other senator, joined Chambliss in a joint statement April 6, saying he, too, “will be taking the case of the F-22 to members of Congress and the Appropriations committees.”
Chambliss, who successfully fought off an attempt two years ago to slow Raptor spending (DAILY, June 23, 2006), declined to say which senators have made common cause with him this time, but he noted the Connecticut congressional delegation has written to President Barack Obama protesting the F-22 cuts. Pratt & Whitney makes F-119 jet engines for the Raptor in Middletown, Conn.
Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) is expected to face stiff re-election opposition in the fall because of his involvement, as chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, with the unpopular banking and financial industry bailout. So it would be hard for him to support the Obama administration on defense cutbacks that could cost jobs in his state.
Chambliss called fellow SASC member Sen. Joseph Lieberman, (Conn.) a Democrat-turned-independent after losing a primary election for supporting Bush administration war policies, “a strong ally and he will continue to be.”
Asked if he was concerned about locking horns with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) the senior Republican on the SASC, who has heartily endorsed Gates’ plans to revise the Fiscal 2010 defense budget request, Chambliss said it wouldn’t be the first time “John and I had a tough fight over the F-22.” Chambliss noted that McCain has not singled out Gates’ F-22 decision for praise, but merely said the budget revision “was headed in the right direction.” Chambliss noted he supported reforming defense acquisition and supports the Levin-McCain Weapons System Acquisition Reform bill, although he would like to see some changes made before final passage – either as a stand-along bill or part of the Fiscal 2010 defense authorization bill.
Photo: Architect of the Capitol
