Patty Murray: “last week the Defense Secretary took historic action by forcing out both the Air Force Secretary, Michael Wynne, and its…”

“last week the Defense Secretary took historic action by forcing out both the Air Force Secretary, Michael Wynne, and its Chief of Staff, Michael Moseley. It was the first time ever that a Defense Secretary has simultaneously dismissed a service secretary and a service chief, and he did so after finding systemic problems in the Air Force that led him to have a serious lack of confidence in their leadership and oversight. I have come to the floor today because Secretary Gates's move raises red flags about many of the Air Force's recent actions, including the decision to award a $35 billion contract to build the next generation of aerial refueling tankers to the European company Airbus instead of Boeing. This is one of the largest contracts in history, and it is critically important. Our tankers refuel planes and aircraft from every single branch of our military. As long as we control the technology to build them, we control our skies and we control our own security. So I was astounded when the Air Force announced in February that it would award this contract to Airbus, and here is why. Airbus and its parent company, European Aeronautic Defense and Space, or EADS, have made no secret of their desire to dismantle the U.S. aerospace industry, and we have seen time and again that Europe is willing to try anything in order to do that.”