Senator John McCain claims CAP is Pork Barrel Spending (Again)

[NCRblues]

I just listened to the audio of McCain speaking and good lord his speech made no sense. Closing of 2 ATC towers around Luke afb. Ok...and? Our budget would not run a major ATC tower for very long. Our budget won't pay the salary and benefits of those controllers for very long.

His statements about us clearly show a lack of understanding of what we even do. What the heck is a "junior youth program" anyway? He can't say "cadet program" because other senators will disagree then, because most of them like young men and women serving and learning.

What a crock this man is.

[NCRblues]

Lets do some math here for a minute. McCain is talking about taking 15 mill or so away from us to put back into the ops budget of the AF to keep our pilots in quals right?

Ok, so while stationed at whiteman afb, right after the b2 crash on Guam, we had an all call with the bomb wing commander. He stated with power point slides that the cost of the b2 per hour was around 130,000 per hour of flight time. He also stated that for the  pilots to stay current they had to fly the b2 six hours a month ( well he said every 30 days). So, there is a fleet of 20 bombers with corresponding pilots for all of them. They all need to be current to bomb so, 20 times 6 is 120 hours. 120 hours at 130,000$ is... 15,600,000 and the budgets gone....in a month....

[A.Member]

McCain is talking on C-SPAN 2 right now.

http://www.c-span.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN2/

Copy of the audio
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2eEV9kYf19lVU9obzFnLTNhX3c/edit

Didn't see it, can't hear it.  Did Amendment #50 go to vote for inclusion in HR 933?  If so, what was the outcome?

[Devil Doc]

I hope it does not happen. I mean the cadets is my units are lining up the door to get in. This would be detrimental (sp) to them. If he does cut it. Can he find another way to fund us? Like under FEMA? Redcross etc? He sure is cutting the budget the wrong way.

[Devil Doc]

So far, it was 63 Yay, 34 no. I think it passed.

[Майор Хаткевич]

Where are you seeing that?

[A.Member]

So far, it was 63 Yay, 34 no. I think it passed.

That was for HR 933.   However, prior to that there should've been a vote as to whether it will include Amendment #50 (McCain's Amendment).

[Майор Хаткевич]

I can't find anything on it at all...

[flyguync]

I dont believe anything has been voted on yet.

They are doing debates, then they vote.

[NCRblues]

They voted on cloture to limit the number of amendments to HR 933. We still have not gotten to a floor vote on the amendment we care about.

[flyguync]

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/vote_menu_113_1.htm

Nothing has been voted on yet today.

[Devil Doc]

Ahh, sorry didnt think they would drag stuff on that much, lol

[Jaison009]

I hope it does not happen. I mean the cadets is my units are lining up the door to get in. This would be detrimental (sp) to them. If he does cut it. Can he find another way to fund us? Like under FEMA? Redcross etc? He sure is cutting the budget the wrong way.

While I agree 1000% on the importance of CAP, it does not need to go underneath Dept. Homeland Security (FEMA needs to go back to a cabinet level position outside DHS).

Just as an FYI the American Red Cross exists on public support, donations, and internal funding mechanisms NOT government funding. We are congressionally mandated to exist but unfunded. We utilize internal funding from biomedical and health and safety revenues to pay salaries, overhead, etc. When people donate to disaster relief, 91 cents of every dollar is put into direct services for clients and we start every disaster spending monies already raised through the disaster relief fund that we quickly use and raise more.

[Extremepredjudice]

This is why we can't cut the budget. Everyone's program has to have funding. Sometimes things are cut. Thats life.

If CAP goes away just find something else to join.

[That Anonymous Guy]

This is why we can't cut the budget. Everyone's program has to have funding. Sometimes things are cut. Thats life.

If CAP goes away just find something else to join.

Tell that to cadets like myself. Tell that to the man who's spent 50 years in the program. Even if I did find another group to join, who would take over the Inland SAR mission? Counties that are financially stressed as it is?

[Devil Doc]

Im part of the Red Cross, Also. Yes, I do know there not government funded, it was just an example. Why dont they put CAP in the DOT budget? Something else to join is not the answer. Just wait till planes start going down and we start charging the county, that will be chaos.

[tribalelder]

Just wait till planes start going down and we start charging the county, that will be chaos.

Or, wait for inland SAR to go to FEMA. Domestic SAR is not part of the military core business, and a user/beneficiary pays scheme could get traction in a time of budget austerity. The state and/or counties will pursue and get authority to bill for the emergency response. With 406 ELT's, a lot of the search could be over, and the activation that doesn't wrap up in ten minutes and three phone calls gets a billable FD/PD/SD response to the presumed crash site. A lot faster response than Gee-we need another sattellte pass in 90 minutes!

We could lose SAR as One of CAP's core businesses. We have one major customer, one major funding source.

[NCRblues]

We wonder why congress can't get anything done...

4 motions for quorum call, one vote on an amendment to limit the amount of amendments, some talking, and motion to adjourn for the night.... Wow...

I think the NB got more work done at a meeting than congress does... And that's saying something

[Extremepredjudice]

This is why we can't cut the budget. Everyone's program has to have funding. Sometimes things are cut. Thats life.

If CAP goes away just find something else to join.

Tell that to cadets like myself. Tell that to the man who's spent 50 years in the program. Even if I did find another group to join, who would take over the Inland SAR mission? Counties that are financially stressed as it is?

I'm a cadet, and I'd gladly tell anyone you want, just give me their contact information. I'd rather something be cut than nothing. Applying basic economic theory, the US won't be around much longer at this rate.

Sequestration only slows the inevitable.

[Private Investigator]

Can somebody pass me a mai tai?