Air Force leaders side with Obama on fighter jet funding

Senior Air Force leaders have inserted themselves into the heated congressional debate over whether to buy more F-22 Raptor fighter jets, sending a letter late Monday to Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., arguing against funding in the fiscal 2010 defense authorization bill to enlarge the fleet of radar-evading planes.

The Senate had been expected to vote Tuesday on an amendment sponsored by Levin and Armed Services Committee ranking member John McCain, R-Ariz., that would strip $1.75 billion for seven F-22s that was added during the markup of the measure.

But Levin said Tuesday that Republicans would not agree to a time for a vote, so he's hoping it can be scheduled for Wednesday.

In their letter to Levin, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley and Chief of Staff Norton Schwartz argued that buying more F-22s would jeopardize funding for other military programs.

Although the defense bill has $1.75 billion for seven F-22s, the program's supporters within the Air Force and on Capitol Hill have suggested that as many as 57 more should be bought. That would amount to "an unfunded requirement estimated at over $13 billion," the service leaders warned.

"Ultimately, buying more F-22s means doing less of something else and we did not recommend displacement of these other priorities to fund additional F-22s," they wrote.

Their appeal follows letters President Obama sent Monday in which he said unequivocally that he would veto any defense bill that includes funding for more F-22s. It also undercuts well-publicized endorsements of a larger F-22 fleet by Gen. John Corley, head of the Air Combat Command, and Lt. Gen. Harry Wyatt, Air National Guard chief, who called buying more planes a strategic necessity.

Levin acknowledged that he expects it to be a close vote, although he said he has support from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

After the Senate votes on the F-22, Levin said he expects the chamber to take up an amendment from Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., that would extend the definition of hate crimes to include sexual orientation and provide federal assistance to state and local authorities investigating and prosecuting hate crimes.