Rummy says base closings estimate could be cut by half

The Dope was recently berated by the commenter "Hud50" as being "astoundingly ignorant" for suggesting that politics, and the Bush administration, played a role in the decision of the Base Closing and Realignment Commission currently holding the fate of the R.I. Arsenal and many other military installations in their hands. When asked why I was so astoundingly ignorant, they replied that the Commission was strictly non-political and designed specifically to be beyond poltics.

The Pentagon now foresees a much smaller round of base closings and consolidations, saying it has only half as much surplus space as previously estimated, according to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld.

That is likely to make the politically touchy subject of base closings less difficult for the Bush administration, although any closures cause angst among the affected communities and their representatives in Congress. Cutting surplus capacity saves billions for the Pentagon.

Rumsfeld is to submit his list of recommended closures and realignments to the [Presidentially appointed] independent Base Realignment and Closure Commission no later than May 16, and the commission is required by law to submit its final report to President Bush by Sept. 8.

Rumsfeld and the White House are both directly and indirectly involved in exactly what gets cut and what doesn't and by how much. To suggest otherwise is to be "astoundingly ignorant."