Ala. Senator(Shelby) Blocks Pentagon Nominee Over Tanker

Source: Associated Press

By BEN EVANS – 31 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican Sen. Richard Shelby is holding up President Barack Obama's pick to lead Pentagon acquisitions because he wants assurances that the nominee won't change the criteria in a heated competition for a $35 billion refueling tanker contract.

Shelby and other Alabama lawmakers are worried the Pentagon might award the contract based strictly on price without considering additional capabilities.

They have a stake in the fight because Northrop Grumman Corp. would assemble the plane in Mobile, Ala. The company is offering a larger, more expensive plane than its competitor, Boeing Co.

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iBgKnDACMmXS6ICK8eOqrs3pk5EQD97B34I82

And why are we paying 35 billion dollars for it?

fighter planes -of which we will hardly ever use? That sounds like a useful investment

:sarcasm:

This kind of thing should be illegal.

Here's a guy who's practically held the domestic automakers hostage because of his hate for unions.

Now, he's holding up a Defense Secretary appointment so that he's assured that he continues to bring home pork to a contractor in his state through less-than-competitive means.

There's something inherently wrong with a system when one person can hold up things for personal reasons that are not for the good of the country. Why isn't this guy publicly humiliated out of office?

Whether or not we should even be buying a new tanker platform is debatable, but Airbus and Northrop delivered a much better plane. Boeing didn't have the right sized platform for the job and that is their problem. Not to mention they fell flat on their face with both the Italians and Japanese on their 767 tankers. Boeing just assumed the USAF wouldn't pick up the phone and say "Hey Yamada/Santino how are you liking those 767's Boeing sold ya?"

If Boeing couldn't deliver 8 planes in 6 years to the Japanese and Italians why confidence should we have in their ability to deliver on a 767 tanker that would have been significantly redesigned and built in much larger numbers? Meanwhile the KC-330 as it would have been delivered to the USAF is already flying.

The only people getting their jobs outsourced in this deal were in Toulouse France, they were going to build an A330 final assembly line in the United States which would have ultimately built the entire A330 family, which given Boeing's giant fuck-up on the 787 would have been a pretty busy place.

But we can’t have those dirty ‘pean furriners building factories in amurica now can we.

with their A330 tankers (and have let the US know about it):

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSN2427186520080124

for term limits.

Northrop/EADS had the lower bid by $3 billion.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/03/business/03tanker.html?ref=business

Murtha's got the right approach here- and yet Shelby once again just shoots himself in the foot.