7/21/2019 Pork Barrel Politics | Vermont Times | June 20, 1991

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By Kevin KelleyStaff Reporter

P o r k B a r r e l

P o l it ic sV e r m o n t ' s P e a c e n i kC o n g r e s s m e n W o r k t o E n s u r e

T h e i r S t a t e G e t s I t s S h a r e 0 1P e n t a g o n L a r g e s s e

LeahyMade political hayleading the charge

against the Stealthbomber but has aweak spot for theV-22.

V

ermont'sthree con-gressmen

are not

shy aboutsaying they'd liketo cut thedefense budget.

Denouncing the$300 billion Pen-tagon spendingplan as fraughtwith waste andneedless wea-pons has become

a staple of'Ver-mont politicallife. But when itcomes to certain

projects withinthat budget, Yer-mont's delega-tion suddenlychanges course,arguing on be-

half of projectsthat not even thePentagon wants

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who's led the fight against theStealth bomber, calling it gold-

plated waste - and James Jef-fords, who voted earlier this yearto cut defense spending by $6

billion. And even freshman Rep.Bernie Sanders - who called fora 50 percent reduction in themilitary budget - is consideringvoting for the Osprey.

It's a stance that has Vermontliberals shaking their heads.

''Perhaps Leahy, Jeffords andSanders, if he goes along withthis, ar e making pragmaticchoices based on the way con-tracts are vied for in Wash-ington, but I would hope our con-

gressional delegation would lookto a more long-term perspec-tive," said Ellen Kahler, coor-dinator of the Burlington Peaceand Justice Center.

The key difference betweenthe Osprey and the other Pen-tagon programs Vermont's con-gressmen have called wastefulappears to be that two Vermontcompanies - Simmonds Pre-cision and Arrowsmith - havecontracts to build pieces of theOsprey. While acknowledgingthat Vermont's piece of the ac-tion is a consideration, Leahy,Sanders and Jeffords reject theimplication that they are pursu-

.some b o o k sM t h n o s u r p r is e s

tu r n o u t tob e b es t s e l l er s .es to vour own checkbook. And some banks these days offerlur~ Info costly surpnses. For these customers, Chittenden Bank

reeking account features: no annual ATM Card fee a no-ion, rea~nable average balance requirements and overdraftccount Interest rate~ and, for a limited time

It's why more Vermonters choose Chittendenny other bank. And that's no surprise. For

any Chittenden office or call our Customer15-2236.

--~_B A N K

m will earn a 5,00% rate tcomoounoed to yield 5.12%ra8erate (4.71%) offered by our major competitors.

Member FOIC

nFranklin

[1~ltSI)I~(~Illl..S..... T.~ ....... T "

ing pork-barrel politics, sayingthe situation isn't so simple.

Vermont's Slice of the PieBesides its ability to do the

work of both a helicopter and aconventional plane, the Ospreyis unique because it's the firstmajor weapons system to be can-celed by the Bush administra-

tion,Congress has refused to go

along with the cancellation,however. In restoring fundingfor the aircraft) congressionalsponsors emphasized theOsprey's potential civilian ap-

plications as a short-hop com-muter plane. American in-dustrial competitiveness has

also become an issue - senatorswarn that the Japanese willdominate this technology unless

the United States goes forwardwitb the program.

Jeffords, Leahy and Sanderseach puts forth various aspectsof these arguments to explainwhy the Osprey should bespared. But they also recognizeits potential to boost the Ver-

mont economy.Gordon Adams, a liberal mili-

tary spending analyst, agreed avalid case can be made for build-ing the high-tech aircraft, par-ticularly from a purely military

perspective. But Adams, direc-tor of the Washington-basedDefense Budget Project, addedthat the Osprey program doescontain "a large element of

pork."

Vermont's piece of the Ospreypie goes mainly to SimmondsPrecision Products. The Ver-gennes firm has a $125 millioncontract to develop a fuelmanagement system for the

Osprey.Arrowsmith, a Shelburne

subsidiary of Texas-based KDTIndustries) also has an interestin seeing the project win full

R oller blade.Try rhe /lltesl Thlttg on WheeIs I

A e r o b lad e

funding. The company, whichemploys about65 Vermonters is

bidding for a $750,000 contr~ctfor the Osprey's wiring systemArrowsmith has already com:pIeted a related $50,000 job.

Leahy and Jeffords both ac-knowledge that the Osprey'seconomic benefits to Vermontcontractors have influencedtheir assessment of the project'sworth.

The local economic impact "issomething that I constantlykeep in mind as I consider my

position" on weapons projectswith a Vermont angle, Jeffordssaid. The Republican senatormaintained, however, that hewould not support a Pentagon

project solely because a Vermontcompany stood to gain from it.Asked to cite a case in which he

opposed a defense initiativebeneficial to Vermont's eco-nomy, Jeffords replied, "I can't

think of a specific instance rightnow, but I'm sure there have

been some."

A Jeffords staffer later citedthe example of the B-1 bomberwhich Jeffords opposed eve~though Simmonds Precisionwould have received some ofthat work.

Perhaps the most unlikelyOsprey supporter is inde-

pendent socialist Rep. BernieSanders.

Doug Boucher, Sanders' staffchief in Washington, said his

boss may vote in favor of theOsprey even though he has

called for a 50 percent cut illPentagon spending over the nextfive years.

"Bernie's position is thatsome defense contracts willremain" even after such a cut,

Boucher said. "Vermont shouldget its share of them .... Just

because Vermont has a con-gressman who wants thesekinds of cuts, that doesn't meanVermont should lose out."

Sanders' stand has disap-pointed his liberal supporters.

"The only way I can reason itin the case of Sanders is his

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strong labor connection," the

Peace and Justice Center's Kah-ler said. "I could see how hecould feel pressure to vote for it

from a short-term economic

standpoint, but I would hopethat if he really believes in cut-

ting the defense budget then hereally will cut the defensebudget."

Sanders has also found awarm spot in his heart for

another weapon of dubiousvalue, the Light Attack Helicop-

ter, orLH.

The senior member of Ver-

mont's congressional delegation,

Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy,has the most contradictoryrecord on Pentagon spending.While opposing some big-ticket

boondoggles like the B-2 Stealthbomber, Leahy also has pushedfor defense industry fillips likethe Osprey.

Leahy says this is because hisview of a particular Pentagonprogram is determined not only

by its impact on Vermont but byits national security implica-tions, as well.

Leahy has been an early andoutspoken opponent of the B-2, astance he pushes vigorouslytoday, even as the radar-evading

Stealth enjoys a resurgence ofsupport stemming from the Per-sian Gulf war. As proof that he'snot in it for the pork, Leahy

points out that SimmondsPrecision has a contract with the

B-2 program worth an estimated

$8 million to $30 million.

With the Cold War concluded,the B-2 no longer has anymilitary justification, Leahycontends, but the Osprey willmake an important contribution

to U.S. security.Gene Kozicharow, a lobbyist

for Textron, the company hold-ing the primary contract for theOsprey, called Vermont's twosenators key supporters. "Leahy

and Jeffords are long-time sup-porters and both have workedhard on behalf of the Osprey," he

said.

Leahy also supports two othercontroversial weapons systems,

parts of which have been con-

tracted to GE Burlington. One is

the LH, or Light Attack Helicop-ter. General Electric's Bur-lington factory recently won adevelopment contract for theLH's turreted gun system. The$40 million deal is to be shared

with Giat, a French weapons

firm. Leahy sent GE a congrat-ulatory telegram after learningof its victory.

"I'm not yet persuaded thatthe LH is as vital a necessity astheArmy says it is," the DefenseBudget Project's Adams said."My preference would be to holdofTon building them."

The other weapons programLeahy backs is known as the YF-22, an advanced fighter planeintended to replace the F-15.Each model of the YF-22 willcost an estimated $73 millionwith the overall tab for the 20:year undertaking put at around

$90 billion.GE Burlington has won a con-

tract for work on the YF-22's am-munition handling system. Thataward could be worth around$20 million should Congress ap-prove the Pentagon's funding reo

quest.The stealth-type fighter "real-ly does represent a technological

breakthrough," oommentsAdams.Citing the experience of the Gulfwar, he notes, however, that no

country other than the SovietUnion appears capable of effec-

tively challenging the existingF-15 and F16. And because ofthe vastly diminished chance ofwar with the USSR, Adamssays, "I'm not in any hurry to

bring the YF22 on line."

(

f

Spread the Pork Around

In their schizophrenic ap-

proach to defense spending,Vermont's congressmen mirror

a national fact of political life:budget-cutting is fine, as long asit's outside your district.

Defense industry interests

have taken advantage of thisfact by parcelling out defensecontracts 80 parts of large

projects are built in as many con-gressional districts as possible,

Pentagon-watcher Adams noted."Most weapons systems com-

bine some ingredient of neces-sity with some element of pork.

Defense contractors know fullwell the value of home-state andhome-district calculations in ac-

quiring congressional supportfor their particular projects.That's why they subcontract like

bejeezus, spreading the eco-nomic benefits all over the

country," he said.At the same time, Adams con-

tinued, "with the Pentagonbudget going down, not every-thing is going to survive. Mem-

bers of Congress are going tohave to be brave enough to take

a little heat."