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Pentagon Supports Senate Tanker
Compromise;
Billions in Savings
Washington,
D.C. - The following is a written statement by Keith Ashdown,
Vice President of Policy at Taxpayers for Common Sense in
response to the Pentagon’s announcement of its support
for the Boeing KC-767 Tanker compromise:
While
not perfect, this deal is a victory for taxpayers. With record
deficits and the growing costs of Iraq, the efforts of the
Senate Armed Service Committee to save billions of taxpayer
dollars couldn’t have come at a better time. The clear
message sent today is that the federal treasury isn’t
Boeing’s personal ATM machine.
We still
have significant concerns about the use of leases to purchase
major new weapons systems, but any efforts to reduce deficit
spending should be commended.
This decision
also restores our faith in the checks and balances that oversee
how defense dollars are spent in Washington. We are thankful
that the Pentagon is finally considering the checkbooks of
taxpayers to be just as important as the paychecks of Boeing
executives.
From the
outset, we have supported the effort of the Air Force to recapitalize
our aging tanker fleet. While their magic bullet lease may
have been the easiest way for them to get tankers, it was
the most costly for taxpayers.
We are
optimistic that this debate will send the message that taxpayers
and lawmakers are going to thwart any attempts to approve
fiscally irresponsible weapons programs without going through
the normal review and oversight process. |
