DoD Buzz: Congressional Musical Chairs

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Congressional Musical Chairs
By Colin Clark Tuesday, October 21st, 2008 9:24 am
Posted in Air, Land, Policy, Space

When Congress returns after the elections, some of the hottest battles between lawmakers are likely to be within the Republican Party about who will get what seats on the House Armed Services Committee.

While House GOP members and staff are largely resigned to getting whupped next month, they also know that they can remain something of a force by hammering away at the Democrats in the role of loyal opposition. And the HASC will have a lot of holes to fill.

Here’s the quick and dirty: the top Republican on the committee (known as the ranking member), Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) is retiring, as is the second ranking GOP member, Rep. Jim Saxton (R-NJ), who heads the powerful airland subcommittee.

That means a battle for the top slot and those are usually great fun for those of us watching. Today, Rep. John McHugh (R-NY) and Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) are the likeliest candidates to replace Hunter. McHugh has the most seniority and is ranking member on the military personnel subcommittee, where he is respected for his detailed knowledge of the issues and his rational approach to the issues.

Thornberry has made intelligence and joint forces issues his specialty. He is a dogged legislator and has helped craft several important pieces of legislation, including the first draft of the bill that led to the Department of Homeland Security and one that led to the creation of the National Nuclear Security Administration, a single agency overseeing security at the disparate facilities that build and design nuclear weapons.


Rest of article at: http://www.dodbuzz.com/2008/10/21/congressional-musical-chairs/?wh=wh