Samuel Skinner, who was Secretary of Transportation and Chief of Staff in the Bush 41 administration, is now a member of the Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC). He is now publicly questioning the commission decision to close Ellsworth Air Force Base near Rapid City. One does not want to get one's hopes up, but perhaps this is a sign that the commission has been successfully lobbied on the merits of Ellsworth. The AP reports this:
Skinner, who visited Rapid City for a base closure hearing in June, also said the commission is wondering why Ellsworth is recommended for closure this year when it was spared in the last round of base closings in 1995.
"We are trying to understand what has changed," Skinner said.
Sen. Thune had this to say:
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said Monday that Skinner "highlighted the argument we've been making all along."
"Placing vital military assets at different locations has always been an unshakable tenet of our national security," Thune said. "We should not abandon that tenet as we enter an era of emerging threats and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction."
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