Congressional Reaction to Base Closings

Several members of Congress spoke to reporters in the U.S. Capitol following the announcement by the Department of Defense of specific proposed military base closures to be made as part of the U.S. military’s reduction in manpower and spending. Representative Charles Hatcher (D-Georgia) said the closure of Moody Air Force Base in southern Georgia would cost the surrounding community over $98 million per year, over 3,700 jobs, and a resulting population loss of 9,300. He said he would work with the commission making decisions on base closures to attempt to persuade them not to include Moody Air Force base on their list of bases to be closed. He justified keeping Moody open on the grounds that Moody had not been included on a 1990 list of bases to be closed, and had just won an award for being the top air force base in the country. close