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| Sequester jitters: Defense cuts could hit Democratic districts the worst |
| 2013-02-19 |
| [WASHINGTONTIMES] When the behemoth, possibly inevitable $1.2 trillion in spending cuts descend on March 1, the Democrats will be sitting pretty, perched in the most advantageous position. Right? Wrong. A careful new study from Bloomberg Government upends that logic. The analysis shows that Democratic congressional districts will be harder hit by the military cuts than Republican districts, and that eight of the top 10 districts that will experience the deepest cuts are represented by Democrats. Uh-oh. Here is the logic, according to Bloomberg government defense analyst Robert Levinson. He notes that "Democrats won 47 percent of the seats in the House of Representatives in the 2012 election, but 58 percent of the military's fiscal 2012 prime contract spending went to companies performing work in those districts. Among the top districts, military spending in those represented by Democrats averaged $893 million this year, vs. $573 million in those represented by Republicans." |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #14 and south - Trestles |
| Posted by: Frank G 2013-02-19 21:35 |
| #13 ..Similar situation at Fort Monroe, VA And Camp Pendleton. The Marines made a significant amount of land a nature preserve/wildlife sanctuary. Not by chance, it's on the northern and eastern areas of the base, areas most coveted by developers. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2013-02-19 21:08 |
| #12 Once upon a time even Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee voiced her opposition to defense cuts. 'Course they were in her district. That thar Military Industrial Complex sure is some cunning sumbitches. |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2013-02-19 20:10 |
| #11 ...Similar situation at Fort Monroe, VA - the developers were salivating over what might well have become the most expensive real estate between NYC and Hilton Head...until the Feds let slip how much unexploded ammo was lying around, dating back to the Civil War. HINT: at least once or twice a year, EOD got a workout. Nobody was going to pay eight figures for the possibility of a UXO beneath the azaleas, so... Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2013-02-19 19:28 |
| #10 I'm sure for a small grant, someone with credentials from higher education can find some sort of new and very local species that will obstruct any clean up on Vieques. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2013-02-19 17:26 |
| #9 In Puerto Rico there were some who wanted the land to build condos and resorts on. The Navy had it all turned into federally protected land instead. That's when the screaming really started. My guess is that they wanted the Federal government to cover the cleanup costs and grant the land to them, but the Feds decided it was cheaper to just leave the land as is. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2013-02-19 16:09 |
| #8 Remember a few years ago when the USN closed a big facility in always reliably Democratic Puerto Rico? Roosevelt Roads and Vieques Island. One of the fastest base-shutdowns ever. In Puerto Rico there were some who wanted the land to build condos and resorts on. Including Puerto Rico's governor; supposedly there were already talks with developers in the works. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2013-02-19 15:18 |
| #7 In Puerto Rico there were some who wanted the land to build condos and resorts on. The Navy had it all turned into federally protected land instead. That's when the screaming really started. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2013-02-19 14:40 |
| #6 Well the dems, when they did the last BRAC on Military bases made sure they shut down everything they could in Republican states. Cuts both ways, you hate the military but you want to feed at the trough of the spending. Screw you, I hope it hurts. |
| Posted by: Bill Clinton 2013-02-19 10:38 |
| #5 Democrats aren't supposed to have jobs anyway, they're supposed to be on welfare. Like the parasites they are. |
| Posted by: Silentbrick - Schlumberger Squishy Mud Division 2013-02-19 09:45 |
| #4 That is usually how it is Mike. Soldiers cause trouble (like a college, young kids just do that) and some people scream loudly about it. Then the base closes and they realize that 60% of their economy is based on those kids and the woe is us screams are heard. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2013-02-19 09:42 |
| #3 ...Remember a few years ago when the USN closed a big facility in always reliably Democratic Puerto Rico? The locals had been b!tching about it for years, and it got worse when a civilian employee was accidentally killed...and when the Navy closed the place, the screams of outrage were monumental. Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2013-02-19 09:19 |
| #2 "Democrats won 47 percent of the seats in the House of Representatives in the 2012 election While it is true, the Donks went from 192 (2010) to 201 (2012) seats; it was a pickup of 9 seats. The Pubs control the House 46% to 44%. Maybe there is a silver lining to be had here. If the Donk districts lose House seats due to sequestration, the Pubs will increase their hold on the House. The Donks are hoping to win the House in 2014 so they can realize the glory days of (2008-2010) unrestricted spending. It was also a time when they were able to realize their decades long |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2013-02-19 08:29 |
| #1 Good, let the cuts hurt. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2013-02-19 01:29 |