May 14, 2005
RED SHIFT:
Military Plans to Shut Down 33 U.S. Bases: Pentagon emphasizes joint operations and realigns troop strength with a shift to the South. California would lose about 2,000 jobs. (John Hendren and Mark Mazzetti, May 14, 2005, LA Times)
The Pentagon presented a plan Friday to close 33 major domestic bases and shrink 29 more, a cost-saving makeover that would slash the military's presence in the Northeast and save nearly $50 billion over 20 years.If approved without major changes, the closures proposed by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld would move thousands of troops and their equipment from the Northeast and Midwest to the South and, to a lesser extent, the West.
May as well have the bases where the Jacksonians are.
Posted by Orrin Judd at May 14, 2005 6:44 AM
hmmmm, it will be interesting to see if the moving of bases involves moving troops to states that are borderline red, thus placing them firmly into the red column.
Posted by: cjm at May 14, 2005 10:37 AMWisconsin could use about 12,000 more republican voters. (Of course the Dems wil just cheat more, but . . .)
Posted by: Jim in Chicago at May 14, 2005 11:27 AMI guess South Dakota (Bush by 22%) can no longer be considered a "Jacksonian" state:)
That state, just by the closure of one Ellsworth AFB, is losing nearly double (3800) the jobs true-blue California is losing.
Oh well, one saving grace of this closure is that neither Tom Daschle nor Bill Janklow are around to be the state's mommy and daddy and muck up things in the process.
Posted by: Brad S at May 14, 2005 12:11 PMOne of the bases being closed is my old Reserve Naval Air Station. I had been going aboard about once a year on this or that pretext--all the people I knew are long gone.
Orrin's exactly right--no use wasting a base on a state politically dominated by people who don't like the military anyway.
Posted by: Lou Gots at May 14, 2005 12:55 PMi remember an article or two, late last year, about federal funding being redirtected away from blue states -- towards red states. about damn time the un-american parts of this country start paying a (steep) price for their sins.
Posted by: cjm at May 14, 2005 1:34 PMThe Army Ammunitions plant outside my childhood hometown Hawthorne, NV (two hours south of Reno) is on the list. It covers 230 square miles and is used for ammunition storage and demolition. If it is closed an isolated town of only 3000 people will lose 400 jobs from the base closure alone. When you factor in the overall effect of those losses on the economy, the town is dead. It won't be able to support 1000 people. It would be a great place for a nuclear reactor, and there wouldn't be any objections from the locals, believe me. When most municipalities were fighting against it, we were begging for the rail version of the MX Missile program in the 80s.
Posted by: Pat H at May 14, 2005 2:08 PMThe old depot in Will County was divvied up, part if it is now the Lincoln Cemetary and my parents will be married there.
Part of it is natural and I think part is business.
W said we need refineries.....
Posted by: Sandy P. at May 14, 2005 3:33 PMSandy: Talk about your Freudian slips...
Posted by: David Cohen at May 14, 2005 3:38 PMBecause Frank Pallone, whom I used to like, has decided to become a partisan hack, since he acquired much of Middlesex County in his district, I am happy to see us lose Fort Monmouth and the tens of thousands of jobs it means. Stick a fork in Lucent, it's done.
Let the ECOM move to the Dallas Metroplex or Phoenix where it will be appreciated.
Posted by: bart at May 14, 2005 6:27 PMOur two local reserve bases are gaining jobs.
Posted by: David Cohen at May 15, 2005 9:35 AM