Defense subcommittees approve authorization bills

The Senate Armed Services Readiness and Management Support Subcommittee met behind closed doors Tuesday to approve its portion of the fiscal 2000 defense authorization bill, LEGI-SLATE News Service reported.

The panel bucked to the full committee such controversial issues as military base closings and liberalization of the Buy America Act.

This virtually assures battles during the full committee markup scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.

President Clinton has asked Congress to appropriate $281 billion in new money for defense for FY2000.

Subcommittee Chairman James Inhofe, R-Okla., told LEGI-SLATE that budgetary constraints prevented him from sending the big increase he wanted for readiness to the parent committee. "We are still just painfully inadequate," he said of his portion of the measure, which totals about $90 billion.

Inhofe said he passed over amendments offered by Senate Commerce Chairman McCain to continue the base closing process and allow the Pentagon to buy from foreign suppliers as well as domestic ones.

McCain is pressing Congress to go along with the Clinton administration and allow at least two more rounds of base closings.

Also Tuesday, the Senate Armed Services Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee approved its portion of the FY2000 defense authorization bill.

Subcommittee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., said his panel felt constrained in raising dollar amounts but shifted the administration's requested funds around under the ceiling.

One shift made by his subcommittee, Roberts said, would quadruple from five to 20 the number of National Guard units trained and equipped to respond to such national emergencies as a terrorist germ warfare attack. He said the subcommittee also redirected funds in an effort to monitor more closely Russia's takedown of its nuclear weapons.

Roberts said there was bipartisan agreement for the changes made to the administration's request and he foresaw no significant controversy beginning Wednesday when the full committee takes up his panel's portion of the defense bill.