Want access to post press releases? To sign up, use this form. You must be logged in.
CONNERS: CRITICAL GAO REPORT MEANS PENTAGON MUST RETHINK FORT MONMOUTH CLOSURE
By thester
CONNERS: CRITICAL GAO REPORT MEANS PENTAGON MUST RETHINK FORT MONMOUTH CLOSURE
(DELRAN) - Assemblyman Jack Conners, chairman of the Assembly Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, today said a new Government Accountability Office report shows the Pentagon must rethink the plan to close Fort Monmouth.
The report found the Army faces "significant challenges" in moving operations from Fort Monmouth to the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. It found it could take until 2016 to reconstitute the fort's 5,000-member civilian workforce at Aberdeen and until 2024 to fully train the workforce to do the work now being done in New Jersey.
Fort Monmouth is set to close in 2011. It was recommended to be closed in 2005 by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission. The move was expected to cost $780 million but that cost is now estimated at $1.6 billion.
Conners, D-Camden, issued the following statement:
"The plan to close Fort Monmouth is a matter of great concern to New Jersey and the country. The GAO report heightens that worry, finding among other things that the Army may face trouble hiring qualified people, getting security clearances, finishing new buildings and paying for the move. This is very unsettling news.
"The idea behind closing military bases was to save money and improve troop readiness, but the GAO report indicates closing Fort Monmouth wouldn't accomplish either goal. In fact, it could impair national security and put our soldiers at risk.
"The Pentagon must reconsider this move. There's still time to keep Fort Monmouth open."
--30--
Contributors
Wally Edge
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a watchdog group that promotes ethics and accountability, has filed a complaint with the ... >
Bob Torricelli
There's nothing more difficult to see than the history before your eyes. It sometimes takes generations to understand the significance of ... >
Michael Patrick Carroll
OK, he didn't say precisely that, but when the Chairman of the Budget Committee informs us that governmental spending is the key to prosperity, ... >
Debbie Holtz
Score one for the Governor’s public relations team. For the last few weeks, they have been working overtime to fuel speculation Corzine was being ... >
Dr. Joseph Marbach
I am pleased to report the results from the first national poll conducted by Environmental Studies Program in the College of Arts and Sciences at ... >
Rob Tornoe
To view a larger version of this cartoon, click here. >
Michael P. Riccards
The media, which loves headlines and knows little history, is trying to sell President Elect Obama as another Franklin Delano Roosevelt. But that ... >
Joey Novick
When I was eleven, way back in 1965, my family was invited for Thanksgiving to my cousins’ cousins, a Jewish-Italian family who lived in the ... >
Juan Melli
After the entire Star-Ledger editorial board opted to accept the paper's buyout offer, John Farmer, a 26-year veteran of the paper, was tasked ... >
Carla Katz
A couple of weeks ago, my mother, Angelina Katz, did her second debate on behalf of Barack Obama. A debate? My mother? If you knew her, you’d be ... >
Patricia Quattrocchi
A rained out MusicFest this past September has provided Union County with $275,000 in insurance monies. The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders ... >
Murray Sabrin
Today the Asinine Watch begins. With so many illiterate statements made about the economy by elected officials in recent days and weeks, it was ... >
Poll
PolitickerNJ Partners
Hot Topics
| Politicker INTERACTIVE | |
 |
Lawmaker Profile Follow the funding of your representatives |
 |
270 to Win See how Obama got to the magic number |
Most Active Stories
- Lonegan enters race for Republican gubernatorial nomination
- Christie says give him four to six weeks
- David Crabiel, longtime Middlesex Freeholder, dead at 78
- Team Lonegan
- Lonegan to kick off his second gubernatorial campaign today
- Amid economic downturn, mayoral backlash, Lesniak anticipates COAH finetuning
- Ariyan mum on BCDO chairmanship prospects
- Some county chairs keep their gubernatorial options open -- for now
- Marra will be Acting U.S. Attorney
- Breaking a glass ceiling: will New Jersey get a Latino Secretary of Agriculture?
- Lonegan enters race for Republican gubernatorial nomination
- Lonegan to kick off his second gubernatorial campaign today
- Breaking a glass ceiling: will New Jersey get a Latino Secretary of Agriculture?
- Davis still stung by Lonegan's targeting of Asselta
- Ariyan mum on BCDO chairmanship prospects
- Team Lonegan
- Some county chairs keep their gubernatorial options open -- for now
- Christie says give him four to six weeks
- Holt declares state senate candidacy
- Republican splinter group calls for Rumana's resignation as Passaic chairman
- Correction: Weiner departure was not his own idea
- Torricelli on COAH
- Two N.J. super delegates go to Obama; Norcross backs Obama; key Clinton supporters endorse Obama
- At energy policy meeting, Rose fights with cabinet and walks away
- Sixteen Democrats are on Norcross' short list for Andrews House seat
- Roughneen in court today on signature challenge
- Jackson will be Corzine's new Chief of Staff
- Obama bundler says he lost $25 billion of N.J. pension funds
- New Jersey's Most Powerful Law Firms
- Jersey City councilman makes it rain in Washington
Quote of the Day
"Because he had to dress for his speech immediately, he had to purchase an entirely new set of clothes. The campaign credit card used to pay for the clothing was reimbursed in total by the airline, which wrote a check for $952.04 to the congressman on July 20, 2007. The congressman then endorsed the check over to the campaign account on July 20, 2007. Thus, the campaign incurred no expense for the clothing." -- Francis Tagmire, a spokesman for U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, on why Andrews used campaign funds to pay for clothing. A Washington, D.C. watchdog group has filed a complaint against him.
Recent Press Releases
- Dec 3 2008
In the News
Read the expanded Wake Up Call, our summary of today’s news media coverage.
Today’s Must Reads:
James R. Lambert: Convicted Felon, Head of Authority― ONLY IN NEW JERSEY...AND PENNSYLVANIA
Why can't we find a role for Christie in Washington? ― MIKE KELLY
Christie Gives Notice, and G.O.P. Gains Hope ― DAVID KOCIENIEWSKI
Christie's legcy― THE BERGEN RECORD
Corzine for Treasury? Don't Bet on It.― WASHINGTON POST
Immigrants still in New Jersey― THE BERGEN RECORD
Syndicate
