House rejects most Obama weapons-cut proposals

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House went along with Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ plans to kill the over-budget F-22 fighter jet but has rejected his efforts to cut off several other big-ticket items.

Despite objections and veto threats from the White House, a $636 billion Pentagon spending bill passed by a 400-30 vote Thursday contains money for a much-criticized new presidential helicopter fleet, cargo jets that Gates says aren’t needed, and an alternative engine for the next-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter that the Pentagon says is a waste of money.

It also contains $128 billion for Pentagon operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, which would bring the total appropriated by Congress for those wars and other efforts to combat terrorism above $1 trillion. The bill rejects Obama’s $100 million request for the Pentagon to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba.

It’s the last of the 12 annual spending bills to come to the House floor as Democrats meet their goal of passing all 12 bills before the August recess.

Even though the House is packed with Obama loyalists, the draw of defense-industry jobs for weapons systems is strong even among the most-liberal members. Typically, contractors and subcontractors are spread across the country to maximize support.

The items Gates seeks to kill mean jobs in states such as Georgia, Texas, California, Connecticut, New York, Indiana and Ohio.

The measure also contains money for nine unrequested F-18 Super Hornet fighter jets, assembled in St. Louis.

Gates appears to feel most strongly about the F-22, an ultramodern fighter aimed at maintaining U.S. dominance in air-to-air combat. But it is poorly suited for 21st-century warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan. Gates wants to cut off production after 187 planes.

Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., the chief author of the defense spending measure, had originally sought $369 million for a start on 12 additional F-22s. But after a veto threat from Obama — and a decisive vote against the airplane in the Senate last week — Murtha beat a tactical retreat and instead directed $139 million toward spare engines for the F-22 and the C-17 cargo plane.