Alternate Engine Almost Grounded

CAGW | October 5, 2009 

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) celebrated a significant victory for taxpayers earlier this month when the Senate Appropriations Committee rejected funding for an alternate engine for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).  According to a September 9 article in The Hill, Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) did not fund the engine because he was concerned that it could jeopardize the entire fiscal year 2010 Department of Defense Appropriations Act.  President Obama has threatened to veto any defense bill that includes money for the alternate engine, which is opposed by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other top Pentagon officials.  CCAGW has fought to eliminate the alternate engine program since Congress first earmarked funds for it in fiscal year 2004, earning the project inclusion in CAGW’s 2004 Congressional Pig Book.  In July, CAGW launched a multimedia advertising campaign to inform taxpayers nationwide that the $7.2 billion alternate engine is unnecessary and will divert scarce tax dollars from other vital national defense programs, and this month, CAGW released an Issue Brief on the alternate engine.  “Congress has eliminated funds for additional F-22 fighters, which was a significant victory for taxpayers, and now it is time to ground another wasteful project,” declared CCAGW President Tom Schatz.  While the Senate has declined to fund the alternate engine, the House included $603 million in earmarked funds for the project in its version of the Defense Authorization bill and $560 million in earmarked funds for the engine in its version of the Defense Appropriations bill.  Read about the next battle in CCAGW’s campaign to eliminate the JSF alternate engine.  Learn more about why the alternate engine is a pork-barrel boondoggle.


Contributor's website: http://cagw.org



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