Priorities Caucus Project Bird-dogging Blog: We’ll Make Them Listen To Us!

Candidate Name: Joe Biden
Date of Event: 13/09/07
Location of Event: Atlantic
Questions: The Navy wants to build Virgina class submarines for $3 billion each. These subs provide no significant benefit above the existing Los Angeles class subs, which would be retired before their full service life is used. Would you cut this program and spend the savings on education and health care?

Responses: Yes. There are a lot of programs I would cut. I would also eliminate Star Wars and would cut over $300 billion from the Pentagon in my first term as President.

Virginia class sub: The Navy wants to build Virginia class submarines for $3 billion each. These subs provide no significant benefit above the existing Los Angeles class subs, which would be retired before their full service life is used. Would you cut this program and spend the savings on education and health care?

Response: “I’ve looked into it and the answer is yes”

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: The Pentagon is developing a complex plane known as the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which is experiencing skyrocketing cost overruns. Even though existing planes are unmatched by any rival, the Pentagon is rushing production. As president, would you slow the production of the F-35 until there is a greater need?

Response: “Yes”

Question: If he would agree to cut Pentagon waste and reinvest in unmet social needs?

Response: I will redirect budget priorities in the Federal Discretionary Budget. There has to be a radical shift. We will have to pay for social needs.

Candidate Name: Edwards
Date of Event: 8/17/07
Location of Event: Keokuk
Questions: The army is undertaking a $160 billion program called Future Combat System that involves complex weaponry & robotics that haven\’t been developed yet. the program is so ambitious that even President Bush tried to scale it back. As President, would you commit to saving taxpayers billions by slowing development of FCS?
Responses: Edwards thanked ISP profusely, saying that we\’re doing a great job! He replied to the question that he didn\’t know much about FCS but he will look into it. He did mention, then, systems that he would cut back or eliminate including star wars, F-22, and our nuclear arsenal. He made a huge point of thanking us and Ben for our work, calling us \”a wonderful group of young people raising issues of defense spending.\”

“I’m proudly wearing this button tonight, from the group Sensible Priorities. They talk about the bloated Pentagon budget and the need to shift some of that wasted money into education, health care and other things… I stand totally with the Sensible Priorities campaign.”

In response to a question from Chet Guinn about cutting the Pentagon budget, mentioning three specific weapons systems as examples, Richardson said:

“I could find 15 percent to cut (out of the Pentagon budget) just out of contracts with companies like Halliburton. There are a lot of weapons we don’t need, like the F-22, the Osprey, that new submarine. I’m learning more about those. And by the way, this campaign is not just a lefty peace group. (Not that’s there’s anything wrong with peace groups!) They have the support of some respected military and business leaders.”

Candidate Name: Bill Richardson
Date of Event: 28/08/07
Location of Event: Oaks Steakhouse, Decorah, IA

Questions: I did not ask a question, but another person did ask a general question about Pentagon spending.

Responses: (Richardson) “Did say, in answer to one of the questions asked of him today, that he is definitely in favor of reducing the pentagon budget and allocating those funds to other programs such as education, health care, veterans affairs, etc.”

On Thursday, I had Dodd and Biden in IC, neither of whom took questions. Then on Saturday I had Edwards in Tipton. He didn’t get to my question but he made a point of pointing me out to the audience and telling them about us. Someone in the audience asked about alternative energy and part of his response was, “I would initiate and lead a program to reduce nuclear weapons around the world.”

On Sunday I went to Edwards in Tipton. This time he took my question. I asked about Virginia Class Subs. He doesn’t know about them and will have to do some research. He then proceeded to tell that audience about who we are and what we do and he listed the programs that he would cut including new nukes, offensive space-based weapons, and the F-22.

And that was my week in bird-dogging.

From Susan

Candidate Name: John Edwards
Date of Event: 03/09/07
Location of Event: Chariton

Questions: The Navy wants to build Virginia class submarines for $3 billion each. These subs provide no significant benefit above the existing Los Angeles class subs, which would be retired before their full service life is used. Would you cut this program and spend the savings on education and health care?

Responses: (This was before I asked the question) “Let’s do the Pentagon question. For those of you who don’t know, these young people are traveling around Iowa and they raise questions about the Pentagon budget I answer their questions regularly and I want to tell you they are doing a terrific job. They make presidential candidates answer questions about the Pentagon budget, what makes sense, what doesn’t and are there ways to save money, so you’re on.
(After I asked the question)
“I can tell you this, because that exact question has been asked in the last couple days I’ve actually begun to look at that class of submarine myself. I haven’t finished the evaluation yet but one of your colleagues will be able to ask me in the next couple of days and I will give you a definitive answer. I have looked at it. I think there is a serious short term question which is the one you’re raising. What I haven’t yet determined is the long term economics of that class of submarine. I’m still in the process of doing that but you have my word I will do it. You will get a definitive answer from me on that. I want to go expand beyond those particular submarines because I think there are things in the Pentagon budget where we could save money. Lets start with George Bush’s effort to develop new nuclear weapons. That will come to an end when I\’m President of the United States, you have my word on that. I would go beyond that and say, you know a few months ago there was a piece in the Washington Journal done by Sam Nunn who used to be a Democratic senator from Georgia, and Henry Kissinger and some others and they said what America should be doing, because of the difficulty of managing nuclear weapons, America should be leading an international effort to rid the planet of nuclear weapons. I want to start that effort as President of the United States because I think it is true. When you look at a country like Pakistan where Musharraf is the leader, he’s unstable, there’s clearly a radical element within Pakistan and they took over the government they have a nuclear weapon and they’re in constant conflict with India over Kashmir, its a dangerous, volatile situation.
Offensive space based weapons, another place where we can clearly save money.
The F-22 fighter jet system which is our state of the art fighter jet…is another place where we’ve had huge cost overruns.
Missile defense, thats something you all know about. Missile defense, which has never been proven to work, is another place where we could save money.
I encourage you to keep raising these questions. Ben Cohen, who started your organization, Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream, that’s him, that’s the guy, is a great advocate on this, I’ve met with him personally so I appreciate all that you’ve done, thank you very much. ”

Candidate Name: John Edwards
Date of Event: 08/16/07
Location of Event: Grundy Center

Questions: Thank you for fighting to fix our budget priorities. The Navy is building the DDG-1000 Destroyer, which is unnecessary to face 21st-century threats, at a cost of $4 billion per ship. The littoral combat ship, which cost 400 million each ship does a far better job of the Destroyers stated purpose of proving support for ground fire, the destroyer is more suited for open sea warfare with a navel supper power that does not exist. As president, would you cut this program?

Responses: “This young man is with a group of young people doing a terrific job because their advocating for the reduction of wasteful pentagon spending and spending that money on other things.”

“I have not looked at this particular destroyer, but I got a list from the past few days days from people that have been to my events, but I will assure you as I did them that since you came here and asked this question I will look at them. Thank you for coming here today, I appreciate you asking them.”

After answering the question he went on to mention:
Then went onto to mention things he already know he would do including having the U.S lead the way in ridding the world of nuclear weapons.
There are other things like star wars, offensive space based weapons systems, the F-22 fighter jet

Candidate Name: Joe Biden
Date of Event: 08/15/07
Location of Event: Waterloo, Iowa Fed
Questions: Would you cut the c130 j cargo plane?

Responses: Before I asked the question I took my photo with him and the Pie Chart Frisbee he said
“I love these things, my grandchildren have like 40 of them and they love to toss them around.”
The answer to the question is “yes.”

Candidate Name: Chris Dodd
Date of Event: 08/15/2007
Location of Event: Waterloo Fed convention

Questions: what I wanted to ask you about, your already committed to cutting the missile defense system, what I want to know about is the space based offensive system

Responses: I am going to look at all those things, look the thing is that obviously cold war technology is outdated, I hope you start talking about 27,000 missiles around the world unaccounted for that we aught to be aggressively locating, they are buried silos and things

I also want to say I am not for unilateral disarmament

Our military is in rough shape and, lots of equipment damaged in Iraq. It needs a complete reassessment