DeLauro, Dodd and Larson Whiff for Pratt
The news last week that Pratt and Whitney got beat on a major defense contract brought the standard response from our Democratic Congressional team of John Larson, Rosa DeLauro and Sen. Chris Dodd.
All were deeply disappointed in seeing Boeing Co. pick up the $40 billion package and used the same tired cliche’s that this was sending a bad signal and sending good paying jobs and work overseas.
The contract would have paid Pratt $10 million per engine for the KC-767.
It might occur to Larson, DeLauro and Dodd that spouting off against the military, criticizing the Bush administration and being concerned with other issues distracting them for spending the long hours and days needed to get this contract secured.
Dodd has spent the better part of the last year running for President. Larson, who claims to be a close personal friend of pork-meister supremo Congressman John Murtha, D-PA, didn’t get his ear and DeLauro, well, she is trying to make the mystery meat served in high school cafeterias safe.
DeLauro now has failed to deliver on two major contracts for her district, the Pratt gig and Marine One. So much for the new majority and a new way of doing business.
March 4th, 2008 at 2:03 PM
Every time some one (usually a union member) cries on my shoulder about losing the big contracts I remind them of who reps us in Congress.
I tell them, vote your pocket book next time. And stop being a dupe.
I ask them, how much weight do you seriously think, DeLauro, Dodd and Larson carry? Look how long they have been in congress and what committees they are on. Are those committees important to CT?????
We deserve better, it’s like our team shows up for the big match with one hand tied behind their backs.
But, hey, the price of corn is up.
March 4th, 2008 at 2:52 PM
So you’re saying that the Republicans will make principled cuts to military spending — reducing our “tax burden” and obviating the prowling for contracts altogether?
Or are you saying that Connecticut Republicans have showed an especial skill at procuring contracts for locally-built military equipment?
Us dupes get so confused sometimes.
March 4th, 2008 at 4:00 PM
No, nice try though.
Talking specifically to their concern, if they are concerned about their jobs and job security, they should take a hard look if their reps are addressing their concerns.
March 4th, 2008 at 4:51 PM
I think mattw has it right.
We shouldn’t give the military the weapon Connecticut thinks it should have, we should give military the weapon it needs to fight.
March 4th, 2008 at 4:58 PM
I think you Chite has it right. Mattw said nothing of the sort.
The military is going to buy a weapon system they need and that meets their requirements.
Having advocates don’t hurt.
We are questioning how well our reps advocate.
March 5th, 2008 at 7:22 PM
I think what chite and mattw meant was that the military should be making the decision between Boeing and Pratt and Whitney and not politicians. The politicians should just set the budget and let the military decide how to spend it best. Chris Healy and CtTaxed.com are just whining about how much better of a job Republicans would do instead of Democrats in injecting political decisions where they don’t belong.
So, the Democrats screwed up at something they shouldn’t have been doing to begin with. Rather than saying (as chite and mattw did) that it shouldn’t have been done to begin with, you two are bragging that Republicans would do the wrong thing better.
March 7th, 2008 at 9:21 AM
No, I can’t speak for Chris Healy, never met him.
But for me, in a perfect world, I could not agree with you more.
However Congress is not a perfect world, and I did not say the republicans would do a better job, I gave kudos to Dan C for at least being there.
At the least our reps could be on the scene and assure a fair playing field.
It will be interesting to see what the Congressional oversight will turn up.
As I’ve said before, our guys won’t be involved. And it’ll be ugly.
Pratt thought they had won this up to 1/2 hour before the announcement. Their intel is not that bad such that they would be blindsided that bad.