By Emelie Rutherford
Boeing [BA] backer Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) was declared the winner of his reelection battle early this week, when House Republicans began planning their takeover of the House and questions swirled about potential defense spending cuts.
Larsen was named the victor in his battle against Republican challenger John Koster Monday night, after a week of ballot counting following the Nov. 2 elections. Thus, the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) on which Larsen sits is poised to lose just 13 Democrats next year, 10 of whom lost their reelection bids and three of whom retired from the House. That number of HASC losses is not set, though, because Readiness subcommittee Chairman Solomon Ortiz (D-Texas) has requested a recount in the race for his state’s 27th District seat, after the initial ballot tally showed him trailing Republican challenger Blake Farenthold by fewer than 800 votes.
Larsen has been a leading voice in Congress for Boeing’s protracted battle to win the Air Force’s aerial-refueling tanker contract, which European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. (EADS) also is vying to build. On the campaign trail, Larsen often touted his efforts to help Boeing secure the contract, according to Washington state media reports. Boeing employees donated $11,000 to Larsen’s campaign, making the company his fourth-biggest donor, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Another lawmaker with ties to the defense industry was belatedly dubbed the winner of his reelection bid yesterday: Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-Va.). His GOP challenger, Keith Fimian, conceded defeat yesterday and said in a statement he will not seek a recount in the close race.
Connolly, before he was elected two years ago to represent Virginia’s 11th district seat, was director of community relations at SAIC [SAI] and chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in his state. During the current congressional session that will end this year, Connolly has served on the House’s Oversight and Government Reform and Budget committees. During hearings he engaged in debates on weapon systems and defense spending.
Lawmakers are preparing to return to Washington next week for a lame-duck session of Congress during which multiple defense issues could arise.
The House and Senate both have not passed a budget-setting appropriations bill for the Department of Defense for fiscal year 2011, which began Oct. 1. The Pentagon is running on a continuing resolution temporarily funding the federal government at FY ’10 levels until Dec. 3. Democrats have considered trying to pass another omnibus continuing resolution including all 12 federal government appropriations bills for next year.
The Senate also could take up the still-pending FY ’11 defense authorization bill during the lame-duck session. The policy-setting legislation contains a controversial provision phasing out the Pentagon’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy banning gay troops from serving openly. Sens. Joseph Lieberman (I/D-Conn.), Mark Udall (D-Colo.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) released a statement yesterday urging the Senate to pass the defense bill, including the gay-policy change, during the upcoming lame-duck session. Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) John McCain (R-Ariz.) is a leading opponent to the gradual repeal of the policy. He reportedly has talked to SASC Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) about removing the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell language from the legislation so the defense bill can clear the Senate.
During the upcoming session, lawmakers also will weigh whether to allow the Navy to buy Littoral Combat Ships (LCSs) from both Austal USA and Lockheed Martin [LMT], which have been competing to build the next batch of the ships for the sea service (Defense Daily, Nov. 4). Congressional aides said some lawmakers are skeptical of the proposal, which the Navy wants Congress to approve by mid-December.
Meanwhile, the new House Majority Transition Team met Monday night and again yesterday, a week after Republican victories across the country gave the party control of the House and its committees starting in January. The team’s 22 members include Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.), who is expected to chair the HASC next year, and fellow HASC members Reps. Rob Bishop (R-Utah) and Mike Conaway (R-Texas).
Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), chairman of the transition team, told reporters yesterday the group will work to fulfill the Pledge to America House Republicans released this fall. The GOP agenda, among other things, demands Congress pass war-funding bills without delay and criticizes President Barack Obama’s plans for sea-based missile defense around Europe.
While the pledge does not specifically discuss defense spending, HASC Republicans have called for bolstering the Pentagon’s budget. McKeon last week slammed Obama’s plans for an annual 1 percent real increase in the defense budget the next five years, saying that funding level is not sufficient for modernization efforts.
Meanwhile, defense-budget watchers are waiting to hear if President Barack Obama’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform will call for cutting Department of Defense funding as part of its effort to balance the nation’s budget by 2015. The bipartisan commission will unveil its recommendations no later than Dec. 1.
The Commonwealth Institute’s Project on Defense Alternatives yesterday released a “cheat sheet” for the commission, prodding it to support trimming the Pentagon’s allotment. The project, which is tied to Rep. Barney Frank’s (D-Mass.) Sustainable Defense Task Force, has proposed nearly $1 trillion in cuts to weapon systems and other military spending over the next 10 years.