Richmond Times Dispatch (Virginia) March 17, 2005
Base-Closing Nominees' Lobbying Raises Questions
Two Bush Picks Deciding Fate Of Military Installations Were Advocates In VA., Calif.
By James W. Crawley
Media General News Service
Questions about possible conflicts of interest have surfaced about two of President Bush's nine nominees to the commission deciding which military bases to close.
Nominees Harold Gehman of Virginia and Philip Coyle of California served on state panels working to keep military installations open during this year's base realignment and closure process.
John Markowicz, chairman of the Subase Realignment Coalition, which is trying to save the Navy submarine base at Groton, Conn., said Gehman's appointment is "a matter of concern because we have a base in Groton that competes with one in Virginia."
"As a straight shooter, he's been filling his six-shooter with bullets made in Virginia," Markowicz added.
Concerns about potential conflicts point to a new dilemma for the base-closure commission.
Like the new commission, the four previous ones -- in 1988, 1991, 1993 and 1995 -- were filled with former congressmen, retired generals and bureaucrats.
This year, for the first time, however, many localities have created aggressive lobbying organizations to protect their bases and have tapped former politicians and retired military officers. Plus, many communities have hired lobbyists and consultants drawn from the same pool of experts.
"On one hand, [the situation] might suggest conflict," said John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, an Alexandria, Va., think tank. "But those two names have high integrity quotients."
Few people have the knowledge, experience and time to serve on such commissions, Pike said.
"They bring an existing familiarity with issues that won't require a lot of on-the-job-training," he added.
Between now and September, the fate of hundreds of forts, naval stations, airfields and other facilities in all 50 states will be on the line as the Pentagon prepares to cut 25 percent of its installations.
In May, the Pentagon will list bases recommended for closure or realignment. The panel nominated this week will make final decisions by September.
The nine commissioner-nominees include two former Republican Cabinet members, two former congressmen and four retired senior military officers.
Gehman and Coyle, as members of their states' BRAC committees, were privy to strategies, closely held studies and other information about bases in Virginia and California. Both state panels have met in closed sessions to discuss BRAC issues, said spokesmen for the two state groups.
Gehman, a retired, four-star admiral who headed the Norfolk-based Joint Forces Command, was a member of the Virginia Commission on Military Bases until he resigned Jan. 25, when Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., submitted his name to the White House.
Gov. Mark R. Warner created the Virginia state commission in May 2003.
Gehman declined, through a spokeswoman, to comment because his nomination is pending Senate confirmation.
Gehman is no stranger to high-profile government panels. He led the boards investigating the space shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003 and the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000.
Coyle, a Defense Department official during the Clinton administration, was a member of the California Council on Base Support and Retention until he resigned last month when House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., placed him in contention for a commission seat.
Like the Virginia panel, the California council was formed to coordinate the defense of military bases.
Coyle, reached at his California home, also declined comment yesterday.
Many military-base advocates worry that any influence -- political or home-state favoritism -- could scuttle efforts to keep open their local installation.
Groton's Markowicz said the base-closure system should be untainted by bias.
"The commission becomes the court of appeals [for bases selected for closing]," Markowicz said. "So, to preserve its integrity, the commission has to be beyond question."
Joe Reeder, a Washington lobbyist and co-chairman of the Virginia state base commission, dismissed criticism of the men or other appointees.
"These concerns are misguided," Reeder said. "It's crazy to think they'd give an edge [to their home states]."
© Copyright 2005, Richmond Newspapers, Inc.
