U.S. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., delivered pointed remarks to Defense officials at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday, saying that Virginia officials had been “stonewalled” in their attempts to get information regarding decision-making on the proposed shuttering of the Joint Forces Command in Hampton Roads.
Deputy Secretary of Defense William Lynn III told senators that Gates concluded that JFCOM and other facilities no longer effectively satisfy the purpose for which they created, and that decisions and tasks could be managed and performed elsewhere. Lynn said the decision was based on about 30 meetings with senior military personnel, during which they concluded that the facility no longer justified a four-star military command with a billion dollar budget.
But Webb pushed for more information, saying the move “has led many to conclude that there is no comprehensive analysis.”
“We need to get our questions answered,” he said. “We need facts.”
Lynn met with Gov. Bob McDonnell earlier Tuesday to discuss the decision to close JFCOM, which has sparked bipartisan protests from Virginia’s governor and congressional delegation.
