C-17

Obama backed away from a campaign pledge to invest in more military cargo planes.

During the campaign and after he was sworn in as president, Obama pressed for investment in programs such as the C-17 cargo aircraft, calling it the "backbone of our ability to extend global power." He silenced his the position after Sec. Robert Gates announced in April that the Pentagon wants to stop buying the planes made by Chicago-based Boeing Co.

All references to the cargo plane were promptly removed from the White House's new website.
After the inaugeration, the website said, "We need greater investment in advanced technology ranging from the revolutionary, like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and electronic warfare capabilities, to essential systems like the C-17 cargo and KC-X air refueling aircrafts, which provide the backbone of our ability to extend global power."

VP Joe Biden had Dover Air Force Base in his state, had been a strong supporter for the Boeing cargo planes.

Gates and the Office of Management and Budget has pressed against additional congressional funding for the cargo planes and other programs seen as wasteful spending. The Pentagon did not request any funding for the planes its 2010 budget request and the OMB listed the termination of the C-17 program as part of a proposal to trim the 2010 spending by nearly $17 billlion.

Gates, this week wrote a letter to lawmakers pushing against funding 10 more C-17, worth $2.5 billion, in the 2010 defense spending bill. Boeing has strong congressional support for the C-17 across the country, as the program keeps 30,000 people employed in 43 states.

Senator Feinstein said that stripping the funds could hurt the military's effort in Afghanistan and Iraq where the C-17 is currently being used. The C-17 is also used in humanitarian transport.

Boing has set up a website, C17foramerica.com, where they are gathering signatures on a petition to keep the C-17 alive.

Can someone explain why Gates wants to stop funding and purchasing of the C-17.