Defense Base Closure, A.M. Session

The commission heard testimony on the proposed list of U.S. military base closings announced April 12 by Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney. The base closings are part of the U.S. military’s planned reduction of manpower and expenditures that will result in a 25 percent reduction of personnel by 1996. Secretary Cheney said the closing of U.S. military bases was the most challenging task of his tenure as Secretary of Defense, and the closings were absolutely necessary under the Department of Defense’s financial constraints placed on them by the budget. He said the shift in strategic preparations of the U.S. military due to the end of the Cold War was also part of the reason for the cutback in personnel and the subsequent base closings. Secretary Cheney said any charges of partisanship in the selection of bases to be closed was “goofy,” and mainly financial efficiency was the main criteria for selecting bases to be closed, as the Pentagon estimated total savings would amount to $800 millio close