Painful Pentagon Cuts

"I don't know if I have--or want --any political future in Massachusetts." With that glum assessment, Secretary of Defense Elliot Richardson responded to mounting criticism of his order last week to shut down 40 military bases and reduce many others, including several in his home state of Massachusetts. An estimated 42,800 military and civilian jobs will be eliminated at a saving of some $375 million a year. Says a Pentagon official: "We have never hit so few places so hard before."

Some are harder hit than others. New England will suffer the most. In Rhode Island, where the U.S. Navy is the biggest employer, more than 21,000 people will be thrown out of work with the closing of the Newport naval base because of lack of facilities to handle today's huge aircraft carriers. In Massachusetts, 6,700 people will lose their jobs when the venerable Boston naval shipyard is closed because of inadequate docking facilities. Equally hard hit by the cuts is Hunters Point shipyard in San Francisco. Of the 5,184 civilians slated to lose their jobs, many are members of minority groups who have been trained as welders, machinists, toolmakers and diemakers.

The South escapes relatively unscathed from the reductions, not surprisingly, since Southerners in Congress remain in control of military affairs. When McCoy Air Force Base shuts down in Orlando, Fla., thousands of people will be out of work. But the city's economy, booming from the $40 million Disney World venture, will hardly notice the loss. Though Georgia will lose three military bases, Senator Sam Nunn said he would ask some questions of the Administration but not raise too much fuss. Compared to the cutbacks in other states, he declared, "Georgia fared well."

While other installations shrink or disappear, the San Diego Navy Base will expand. It will become in fact the largest U.S. Navy port, reflecting the Pentagon's decision to locate on the Pacific Coast the nation's prime naval facilities. Thirty-one ships will be transferred to San Diego, bringing along 12,000 crewmen and adding as much as $100 million a year to the Navy payroll. Last year the Navy contributed $1.2 billion to the economy of the San Diego area. The expansion is expected to add $56.5 million a year in retail sales alone; some 6,800 new jobs will be created to serve the base.

Residents have mixed feelings about this boost to their economy. San Diego is one of the fastest-growing regions in California, and thus there is a severe housing shortage; 1,000 Navy families are already on the waiting list. The city does not know how it will accommodate the influx of newcomers--or educate their children. Because of the cutbacks in impact aid for schools serving federal installations, the San Diego school system has been trimmed to $4,000,000 (from an anticipated $6,000,000) in federal funds this year.

Protests over the closing of bases are not likely to dissuade the White House. The plan has been in the works for more than a year; Richardson simply reviewed the details and went along. While past Presidents have grumbled about superfluous bases and then backed off, Nixon clearly means business. In fact, more cuts may be in store, including some of the 1963 U.S. installations overseas. Of all the controversial cutbacks Nixon has proposed to date, the trimming of military bases seems best able to stand the test of prudent management.

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