ME/NH DELEGATION MEMBERS AND GOVERNORS MEET WITH BRAC COMMISSION CHAIRMAN


U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe
U.S. Senator Susan Collins
U.S. Senator Judd Gregg
U.S. Senator John Sununu
U.S. Rep. Tom Allen
U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud
U.S. Rep. Charles Bass
U.S. Rep. Jeb Bradley
U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C.
Friday, May 27, 2005 - For Immediate Release
Contact:

MARK SULLIVAN (Allen), (207)774-5019
MARGO SHIDELER (Bass), (202)225-5206
STEPHANIE DUBOIS (Bradley), (202) 225-5456
AMY SWANSTROM (Collins), (202)224-9238
ERIN RATH (Gregg), (202) 224-3324
MONICA CASTELLANOS (Michaud), (207)782-3704
ANTONIA FERRIER (Snowe), (202)224-1304
BARBARA RILEY (Sununu), (202) 224-2841
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ME/NH DELEGATION MEMBERS AND GOVERNORS MEET WITH BRAC COMMISSION CHAIRMAN

(Washington, D.C.)--- Today Members of Maine and New Hampshire’s congressional delegations met with BRAC Commission Chairman Anthony Principi to discuss the Pentagon’s recommendation to close Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) Center in Limestone, and to realign Brunswick Naval Air Station (NASB). Maine Senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, New Hampshire Senators Judd Gregg and John Sununu, Maine Representatives Tom Allen and Mike Michaud and New Hampshire Representatives Jeb Bradley and Charles Bass issued the following statement:

"With communities all over the country demanding he focus on their bases, we thank Chairman Principi for taking the time to meet with us today. He comes to this base closing process with an open mind and a commitment to hearing us out as we make our case. This is another step in our continuing effort to lay out our arguments: the Pentagon’s recommendations are based on faulty data and assumptions and following them would negatively impact our national security.

"We also reiterated to Chairman Principi that we do not believe this base closing process should be allowed to go forward until the Pentagon provides us and the BRAC Commission all of the data, methodology, and assumptions it used to arrive at its recommendations. We call on the Department of Defense to make a full and complete accounting and to stop playing games when so many of our hardworking men and women’s livelihoods are at stake."