Rep. Ryan has the chance to flex his political muscle

When he was making a bid for a seat on the powerful House Appropriations Committee, Congressman Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th, contended that he would be in a position to not only funnel federal dollars to the Mahoning Valley, but to wheel and deal with colleagues.
Just about a month and a half after being sworn in as a member of the panel, Ryan finds himself in the midst of a battle being waged by Ohio's two senators and several representatives to restore funding for the military base realignment program.
In the past two weeks, the Democratic controlled House and Senate cut 3.1 billion from the Base Realignment and Closure Commission line item in the massive fiscal year 2007 spending blueprint submitted by the White House.
Ohio Sens. George V. Voinovich, a Republican, and Sherrod Brown, freshman Democrat, have written letters to Sen. Robert Byrd, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Thad Cochran, the ranking Republican, urging them to restore the funds.
Voinovich and Brown also wrote to Defense Secretary Robert Gates expressing concern about the implementation of the BRAC decisions.
In the letters, they argue that the decisions made by the commission with regard to which military installations would be closed and what would happen to the rest are legally binding and, therefore, the budgetary requests submitted by the president must be maintained.
The senators expressed concern that a reduction in the appropriations would result in many BRAC projects being delayed or shelved. They noted there are two in particular in Ohio that are on the line: Wright Patterson Air Force Base construction; and, the Defense Financing Accounting Service transformation plan that is expected to bring hundreds of jobs to Cleveland and Columbus.
Joining the fight
Reps. Steven LaTourette of Concord Township, a Republican, and Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Dennis Kucinich, both Democrats from Cleveland, also have written to the Appropriations Committee in the House urging a restoration of the BRAC funds.
Congressman Ryan will undoubtedly have a say in what happens with the budget, seeing as how projects in Ohio are on the line.
There is no indication that the Youngstown Air Reserve Station in Vienna Township is in jeopardy. Ryan was not only able to keep the base off closing list, but succeeded in bringing about an expansion of its mission. Ryan served on the House Armed Services Committee's base closing subcommittee when BRAC was in effect in 2005.
The success in keeping the Youngstown facility from being mothballed can be attributed to the community-wide campaign called SOAR -- Save Our Airbase Reservists. Indeed, a sign of that effort can still be found in the window of an empty building in downtown Youngstown.
That said, Ryan's presence on the Armed Service Committee was a definite plus. Likewise, his service on the Appropriations Committee should not be underestimated.
As we said in an editorial last year commenting on his appointment, "... he will be one of a handful of individuals deciding how 873 billion should be spent. Membership has its rewards. Each member has a pool of money that he or she controls, which puts them in a strong position to bargain with other members."
The congressman is now in a position to offer his assistance to Voinovich, Brown and the other legislators -- and will no doubt be able to get things in return for the 17th District.