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MONDAY 06.30.14
VOLUME 135
NUMBER 155
SINCE 1879
ADVICE C4
BUSINESS A8
CLASSIFIED C6
COMICS C5
LOCAL A3
LOTTERIES A2
OBITUARIES A9
OPINION A11
SPORTS D1
TV D8
JULY 4 FIREWORKS
IN ATLANTIC CITY
Soundtrack for Sky Concert display is chosen
by popular demand AT PLAY, C1
WORLD
CUP REF
FIRST AMERICAN
Beachwood Mark
Geiger to be frst
American to
offciate knockout
round match
SPORTS, D1
OBAMA TO NAME NEW VETERANS ADMINISTRATION CHIEF PAGE 1B
The big gray aircraft that wheel above the Pine Barrens played a critical role for
America in Iraq and Afghanistan, fueling the air bridge for troops and equipment,
stretching halfway around the globe.
But the KC-10 Extender air refueling tankers at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lake-
hurst may be in danger of early retirement, the jets and thousands of local jobs they
support in a squeeze between tightening budgets and the time lapse for bringing on
the Air Forces next-generation tankers, base advocates say.
The KC-10s were manufactured and began coming online in 1989. That makes
them old birds, and the Air Force would very much like to retire them, said former
Rep. Jim Saxton, who during his tenure from 1984 to 2008 led efforts to spare New
Jersey the worst of post-Cold War base closings.
JOINT BASE IN
CROSS HAIRS?
A rendering shows how the Air Forces next-generation KC-46A Pegasus air refueling
tanker will refuel F-16 fighters in flight. IMAGE COURTESY OF BOEING CORP.
Retirement of fueling tankers could mean cuts
By Kirk Moore @KirkMooreAPP
JOINT BASE
ECONOMICS
As the first base under
unified command, Air
Force, Army and Navy
missions are conducted
under a single admini-
stration with a host of
other tenants including
National Guard, Reserve
and Coast Guard. The
economic impact across
central and southern
New Jersey is estimated
at $6.9 billion and be-
tween 44,000 and
65,000 jobs, directly
from government
spending and indirectly
from spending in sur-
rounding communities.
See TANKERS, Page A6
At some
point were
going to lose
those
KC-10s.
Former Rep.
Jim Saxton, an
advocate for the Joint
Base
TRENTON Democrats leading the investigation by
lawmakers into the George Washington Bridge scandal
are fending off pressure from supporters of Republi-
can Gov. Chris Christie and nudges from members of
their own party to wrap up the probe after six months
on the job.
Instead, Chairman John Wisniewski said the New
Jersey Legislative Select Committee on Investigation
will return from a short break next week and hold at
least four meetings in July.
The committee has a list of 13 potential witnesses in-
cluding Christies former chief counsel, Charles Mc-
Kenna, and his top political strategist, Michael Du-
Haime.
Wisniewski said the seven hours of testimony earlier
this month from Kevin ODowd, Christies chief of
staff, was convincing that there is more to look at.
ODowd told lawmakers he asked few questions and
only made minimal effort to find out why the lane clos-
ings occurred last September and who gave the orders.
Even assuming the best-case scenario for why ad-
ministration members did what they did, it shows an ad-
ministration overall that does not have any managerial
control over whats going on and no accountability,
said Wisniewski, a Middlesex County assemblyman.
Republicans have pushed back. Two months ago,
four GOP members of the panel headed by Wisniewski
and Sen. Loretta Weinberg, D-Bergen, complained that
leadership was withholding information, and one mem-
ber said the group discussed walking away from the in-
vestigation.
GOP Assembly Leader Jon M. Bramnick said con-
ducting 13 more interviews would be excessive, though
Wisniewski said its possible not all of the potential wit-
nesses will be called.
This is the problem when politicians investigate
politicians. It never ends, Bramnick, R-Union, said.
GWB LANE-CLOSING PROBE
Panel fends
off pressure
to wrap up
investigation
Assembly GOP
leader Jon M.
Bramnick
(left) wants
Chairman
John
Wisniewski
(right) to
wrap it up.
Chairman plans four meetings,
has list of 13 more witnesses
By Bob Jordan @BobJordanAPP
THE GWB SCANDAL PROBE CONTINUES
The New Jersey Legislative Select Committee on Investigation
will meet July 8, 15, 17 and 21 in Trenton in Committee Room
11, fourth floor, of the Statehouse Annex, Trenton.
See PROBE, Page A6
INTO THE BREACH
HOLDING BACK THE OCEAN
Nearly $3 million in federal funds has been
allocated to repair the sea wall in Sea Bright and
Monmouth Beach. TODAY, Page A3