Maine and New Hampshire Delegations Continue Support for Portsmouth
By Tim Heaney
WASHINGTON , April 12 – Members of the Maine and New Hampshire congressional delegations received thousands of constituent letters Tuesday opposing any attempt to close the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.
The Seacoast Shipyard Association, under the slogan “Save Our Shipyard,” presented the two delegations with approximately 10,000-12,000 letters of support for the endangered base. The lawmakers said they would deliver the letters to the Defense Department.
New Hampshire Sens. Judd Gregg and John Sununu and Reps. Jeb Bradley and Charles Bass and Maine Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins and Reps. Tom Allen and Mike Michaud continued their campaign to save the yard, which is in danger of being shut down in the latest round of military base closings.
Portsmouth escaped closure attempts in 1991, 1993 and 1995, and supporters argue that the shipyard has vastly improved since then. Portsmouth is the only nuclear naval base in operation, Bass said, and its roles in the military and in the local community justify its preservation.
“It has its own unique contributions to make to national defense, and, as we did back in 1995, we will make the same cases again,” he said. “Clearly, the community is galvanized and it is united on this; there’s no element of partisanship around here.”
Seacoast Shipyard Association members and the two congressional delegations said that the shipyard is the most efficient in the country and that shutting it down would hurt the Navy’s efficiency.
Greater Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce official Ginny Griffith said the association has recently faxed 10-12 letters a day to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as “little reminders” of the community’s commitment to the yard.
The two states have planned a joint rally for April 23 at Prescott Park in Portsmouth, N.H., and John Paul Jones Park in Kittery, Maine. Portsmouth is one of 426 national military installations under review as part of the base realignment and closure process, which the Defense Department says was intended to save billions of dollars.
“This needs to be underscored. It’s a record of performance and quality and a set of skills that just can’t be duplicated by any other yard,” Sununu said.
On May 16, Rumsfeld will reveal his recommendations for base closings. A nine-member presidential Base Realignment and Closure Commission will review the list and submit its recommendations to President Bush, who in turn sends his recommendations to Congress. The legislative branch must then accept or reject the recommendations on an all-or-none basis.
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