[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 17527-17528]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       REEXAMINE THE BRAC PROCESS

  (Mr. POE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. POE. Mr. Speaker, I have some concerns with the base closure 
process currently taking place. Under the recommendations, Ellington 
Field in Houston, Texas, is scheduled to lose all of the F-16s and the 
147th Fighter Wing. This would endanger the ability to protect 
southeast Texas.
  The base closure criteria is based upon military and strategic 
importance, but it also needs to factor in homeland security risk 
assessments as well. The F-16s at Ellington Field protect Houston, the 
fourth largest city in the United States.
  The city has two major airports. It has the largest medical center in 
the United States. It is, of course, the home of NASA. It has the Port 
of Houston, the second largest port in the United States, and two 
additional ports, Port Arthur and the Port of Beaumont where one-third 
of the military cargo goes to Iraq, not to mention the petrochemical 
area and the energy capital of the world.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I plan on introducing a resolution in Congress this 
week that will call on the President to factor in homeland security in 
the base closure process and disapprove of any recommendation unless 
the President is convinced that the recommendations will not adversely 
affect homeland security in the United States. We need to keep the F-
16s flying over Houston.

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