138th Year... and still on the job!	Thursday November 9, 2006

Rumsfeld ouster won't affect chem demil process, officials say

By JOHN NORTON
THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's departure is not likely to have an effect on the destruction of chemical weapons here but a new Congress could.

Irene Kornelly, a member of the Colorado Chemical Demilitarization Citizens' Advisory Commission and a national expert on military base closure issues, said that she doubted Rumsfeld's resignation would mean a shakeup in the Defense Department's upper ranks, where the weapons destruction program is managed.

Currently, the program is overseen by Kenneth Krieg, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics. Krieg, appointed last year by President Bush, has been supportive of the program.

But the changes in that job have played havoc with the program over the past few years. One of Krieg's predecessors ordered the weapons destruction program accelerated after the 2001 terrorist attacks but another manager halted the program when costs appeared to be rising.

The Pueblo Chemical Depot holds a stockpile of 780,000 aging artillery shells and mortar rounds containing 2,611 tons of mustard agent. The weapons are supposed to be destroyed under the terms of an international treaty but Rumsfeld himself has said the United States is not going to meet the 2012 deadline.

Kornelly said she was less concerned about shakeup in the wake of Rumsfeld's departure as much as Krieg deciding to leave in advance of the 2008 elections. "I can't imagine Gates is going to come in and clean house," she said, referring to Robert Gates, Rumsfeld's likely successor.

"People don't like to be the last ones out," she said, saying that he might decide to leave before a new administration comes in. "They just start jumping ship. That's going to be the problem. When that happens, they'll appoint an acting whatever, then you won't get anything done unless Congress orders it."

Ross Vincent of the Sierra Club and another CAC member, also doubted Gates would make any major personnel changes. "I don't know much about him," Vincent said, adding, "I think a lot depends on whether this indicates a serious change in policy."

Vincent didn't expect to see any changes in the Pentagon's budget for the Pueblo program, limited to $150 million annually because of other strains on defense spending. He said it would be more likely that Congress would take the lead.

"It's remotely conceivable that out of this will come a change in budget priorities within the defense budget, where Congress says you're no longer allowed to steal money from all these other programs to fund adventures overseas."