Oregon would lose more than 1,000 military personnel and all Portland-based F-15 fighter jets would be transferred to other states under a major base closure and realignment plan announced Friday.
According to a list released by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, the Umatilla Chemical Depot near Hermiston and the Naval Reserve Center in Central Point would be closed, and the Air National Guard base in Portland would be significantly reduced in size.
The plan drew immediate fire from some members of Oregon's congressional delegation, including Republican Sen. Gordon Smith. They worried about the loss of jobs and protecting the state.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, also objected to the plan.
"I have a hard time understanding how the military can effectively maintain Homeland Defense in Oregon and the Pacific coast, when they're moving all the operational capabilities away from the Portland Air Guard Station," said DeFazio, D-Ore.
The list of effected Oregon bases:
Navy Reserve Center Central Point: Closing, loss of seven military jobs.
Umatilla Army Depot: Closing, loss of 127 military and 385 civilian jobs.
Portland International Airport Air Guard Station: Realignment, loss of 112 military and 452 civilian jobs.
State total: Loss of 246 military and 837 civilian jobs; 1,083 jobs lost overall.
The Pentagon also wants to close the Army's century-old Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The world-reknown facility opened in 1909 in the nation's capital, and has treated presidents and foreign leaders as well as soldiers and veterans.
1 comment:
Hmmm...Walter Reed happens to be the Army's stateside medical center for many of the wounded soldiers from overseas combat zones...Where would they propose for these soldiers to go? Or are they deciding that soldiers are now safe in these combat zones? Where will they treat the various soldiers who have lost limbs? Walter Reed has a specialty for treating these types of medical patients. Maybe the military is proposing that soldiers really do not lose limbs anymore either.
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