By Rebekah Johansen
Sometimes it’s hard to accurately convey the pure gall some establishment members of Congress have when it comes to spending money we don’t have – and in some cases, that the recipients don’t even want.
From Defense Daily [emphasis added]:
Senate appropriators have blocked the Navy’s plan to sideline 11 Ticonderoga-class (CG-47) cruisers for long-term modernization and, like their colleagues in the House, placed limits on how many of the ships can be taken out of service at any given time for the upgrades.
The Senate defense appropriation bill for fiscal 2015 scolded the Navy for its repeated attempts to get rid the cruisers, while allowing the service to start modernizing two of the cruisers in 2015 and said no more than six can be out of service at the same time to undergo the work.
“The committee is perturbed by the Navy’s disregard for congressional direction provided for two consecutive years,” the language said, referring to unsuccessful attempts by the Navy the previous two budget proposals to retire seven cruisers early. Regarding the Navy’s latest proposal to layup and eventually return the ships, the senators questioned whether the Navy would actually bring them back as stated.
via Senate Blocks Navy’s Plan to Sideline Cruisers | Coalition to Reduce Spending.