Machinists tell Northrup Grumman/Airbus front group to take a hike

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

Vraag me af waarom Northrup Grumman/Airbus géén bod doen op het contract
voor de tanker-vliegtuigen?

Ze zijn moe van het bieden (het is immers al de derde keer nu) én
overtuigd dat ze dit keer géén eerlijke kans krijgen?
Ze hadden het kontrakt immers de laatste keer al zo goed als gekregen,
totdat Boeing in de politieke pot ging roeren.

Groet / Cees

http://www.openleft.com/diary/17685/machinists-tell-northrup-grummanairbus-front-group-to-take-a-hike
  Machinists tell Northrup Grumman/Airbus front group to take a hike
by: Mike Lux
Thu Mar 04, 2010 at 16:30

Some of you may remember that I did the very unusual thing for me, and
actually am working with a major corporation, Boeing (as well as my
friends at the International Association of Machinists) on this project
to award a new defense contract for tankers. I did this because the idea
of spending tens of billions of American taxpayer dollars to create a
bunch of jobs in other countries- and only a few hundred non-union jobs
in Alabama- made no sense to me when we could be creating thousands of
good-paying union jobs in America.

The latest development in this long saga is that Northrup Grumman and
Airbus have set up a front group called Build Them Both, which is
advocating for the contract to get split up. This is a goofy idea for a
bunch of reasons, but Northrup Grumman/Airbus did it because they know
the odds of them getting the entire contract is pretty small (their odds
are so low that they are even debating not submitting a bid on the
contract). This new Build Them Both group has sent a letter to the big
Boeing Machinists union in Seattle, doing sort of a faux outreach effort
to pretend they are something other than a front group. (Take a look at
this article on that issue from the Machinists.) The Machinists pretty
much dismantled the build them both idea with ease, explaining in detail
all the reasons it's a dumb idea. You can check out both letters here
and here.

Northrop Refusal to Bid on Air Force Tanker Bad News for American
Workers, Men and Women in Uniform, Taxpayer
http://buildthemboth.com/

Written by Build Them Both | Mar.08, 2010

President Obama, Let’s Hire Both Companies, Create 100,000 Jobs, Save
Taxpayer Hundreds of Millions

Washington, DC (March 8, 2010) – Today, Build Them Both campaign manager
Carrie Giddins issued the following statement in response to Northrop
Grumman’s decision not to bid on the Air Force aerial tanker contract:

“Northrop Grumman’s refusal to submit a proposal in the Air Force aerial
tanker competition is bad news for American workers, our men and women
in uniform, and for the taxpayer. With only one company seeking the
contract, 50,000 jobs that would have been created will not be. In
addition, without an ongoing competition there is no way to control
costs, to the detriment of our military and taxpayer.

“Build Them Both urges President Obama to step in and – with the stroke
of a pen – hire each company to build its proposed new tanker. This will
put 100,000 Americans to work, provide the Air Force more tankers more
quickly and offer massive taxpayer savings over building only one.”

###
Build Them Both Campaign Welcomes Boeing’s 767 Tanker Announcement –
First Step Toward Building Both Tankers, Creating 100,000 New Jobs
Written by Build Them Both | Mar.04, 2010

Washington DC (March 4, 2010) – The following is the statement of Build
Them Both Campaign Manager Carrie Giddins concerning today’s
announcement by Boeing of its plans to offer the “NewGen” 767-based
tanker. Build Them Both welcomes Boeing’s announcement as it is a sign
that the process toward creating the jobs necessary to supply the Air
Force with new refueling tankers is moving forward.:

“We believe that it is crucial to our nation’s economic recovery for the
Air Force to decide to Build Them Both.

“By building both the Boeing tanker and the Northrop Grumman tanker we
will create 100,000 American jobs.  We will also speed the delivery of
new tankers to our men and women in uniform, thereby saving billions of
dollars.

“The Air Force already plans to order three different kinds of new
tanker.  We are simply calling for that process to be sped up by
building the first two now.  Building them Both means the taxpayer saves
money, the military gets what it needs more quickly, and 100,000
American workers find good paying long lasting jobs.”
Governors Ask President to Build Them Both
Written by Build Them Both | Mar.04, 2010

The Build Them Both campaign is encouraged by a report in today’s
POLITICO noting that the governors of Maryland, Mississippi, Ohio and
West Virginia have written President Obama, urging construction of both
the Northrop Grumman and Boeing aerial refueling tankers for the Air
Force. As reported, the governors note that building both would create
many jobs in their states at a moment of severe economic strain.

“The governors’ letters to President Obama underscore the Build Them
Both campaign’s message: By building both, we can create 100,000 new
American jobs, something that is desperately needed in this economic
downturn. Building Them Both will utilize money that the federal
government already planned to spend in a manner that will be more
cost-effective and it will deliver a new aerial tanker, which our men
and women in uniform deserve,” said Build Them Both campaign manager
Carrie Giddins.
Build Them Both Responds to Machinists Union
Written by Build Them Both | Mar.01, 2010

Following International Association of Machinists District 751
President, Tom Wroblewski’s decision to decline Build Them Both’s
invitation to join our campaign to create 100,000 American jobs now,
Build Them Both executive director, Daniel Kohns, responded to President
Wroblewski, highlighting the advantages of building both tankers.

Kohns noted that building both is, “a perfect solution. More tankers at
a lower cost to the taxpayer, creating more jobs and providing better
equipment faster  for our men and women in uniform.”

“I would look forward to revisiting IAM’s views on the matter,” Kohns
concluded, “but, for the moment, we are sorry that you will not be
joining us in a fight that not only would benefit more of your members,
but America as a whole. Your participation will be sorely missed.”
American labor movement is integral to Building Them Both
Written by Build Them Both | Feb.25, 2010

Today, Build Them Both asked International Association of Machinists and
Aerospace Workers District 751 President, Tom Wroblewski for this key
union’s support in the campaign to create 100,000 American jobs. In his
letter to President Wroblewski, Build Them Both executive director,
Daniel Kohns, expressed the hope that our coalition and the Machinists
union will, “cooperate to achieve the fundamental goals that Build Them
Both, the Machinists and the labor movement as a whole share: Getting
America back to work.”

Kohns noted, “In Washington State alone – and in addition to the
thousands of jobs that Boeing would support with this contract –
Building Them Both would lead to the creation of more than 2,700
additional jobs, not to mention thousands of other jobs in some of the
most economically challenged parts of our great country, such as at
General Electric in Ohio and Pratt & Whitney in Connecticut building
engines for the two tankers.”
Air Force Vice Chief of Staff (Ret.): Mr. President, buy both
Written by Build Them Both | Feb.24, 2010

In a FOXNews.com opinion piece, former US Air Force Vice Chief of Staff,
Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Thomas McInerney asserted, “Mr. President…there is only
one smart option…buy both.” Gen. McInerney noted numerous advantages of
hiring both Boeing and Northrop Grumman to build two planes:

1. Creation of 100,000 rather than 50,000 jobs;

2. Tens of billions of dollars in cost savings to the taxpayer generated
through ongoing competition between the two companies; and

3. Providing our men and women in uniform with the tools they require
sooner than later.
Sen. Murray, Let’s Build Both Tankers, Create Jobs Nationwide
Written by Build Them Both | Feb.24, 2010

Today, Sen. Patty Murray (WA) issued a statement regarding the
Pentagon’s release of its Request for Proposals to build the Air Force’s
next generation of aerial refueling tanker aircraft. In it, the senator
was confident that the tankers would be built in Washington State,
leading to job creation there.

In a statement, Build Them Both campaign manager, Carrie Giddins,
applauded Sen. Murray’s commitment to job creation, but urged the
senator to support hiring both Boeing and Northrop Grumman to build both
tankers, creating 100,000 American jobs in all 50 states.
Memo to Congress: Urge Pentagon to Build Them Both, and Put America Back
to Work
Written by Build Them Both | Feb.24, 2010

With the Department of Defense (DoD) having scheduled briefings today of
members of congress interested in the Air Force acquisition of a new
aerial refueling tanker, Build Them Both felt it important to suggest a
few questions about the merits of building both tankers, which would
create double the number of jobs – 100,000 – than would a sole award.

While the tanker request for proposals should be released today, there
are already clear indications that this issue could, once again, be
embroiled in controversy.  Northrop Grumman has signaled that it may not
even submit a proposal and neither Boeing nor Northrop Grumman has
pledged to refrain from the kind of protest that sank the competition in
2008.  This means there is a great risk of further delays, increased
costs and a failure to deliver on the promise of creating 100,000
American jobs.
Outreach to Northrop, Boeing and their Suppliers
Written by Build Them Both | Feb.23, 2010

Build Them Both is committed to forming the broadest possible coalition
to encourage President Obama to immediately create 100,000 new,
good-paying American jobs by ordering the US Air Force to hire both
Boeing and Northrop Grumman to build the next generation of aerial
refueling tankers. To this end, we have issued letters asking both
companies – and their engine suppliers, Pratt & Whitney and GE Aviation
– to join our campaign and help get America back to work.

In her letters to the four companies, Build Them Both campaign manager,
Carrie Giddins noted, “By ‘building them both’ we will end a political
fight that has benefited no one, created zero jobs, and has needlessly
delayed the delivery of new tankers to our warfighters, and, more
importantly, create 100,000 new, good-paying jobs across the country.”

In the days ahead, we will be conducting additional outreach to other
suppliers and interested parties.
A Letter To Governor Gregoire
Written by Build Them Both | Feb.22, 2010

Today, Build Them Both campaign manager Carrie Giddins delivered a
letter to the Hon. Chris Gregoire, Governor of Washington state and
fellow governors, urging them to join the Build Them Both campaign and
help create 100,000 new jobs nationwide.

The governors held a news conference advocating for the Boeing Company
to be awarded the contract to build the next generation of US Air Force
aerial refueling tanker.

In her letter,  Giddins urges Governor Gregoire and her counterparts to
extend their efforts to support a tanker contract for both Boeing and
Northrop Grumman, noting that building them both means tankers will be
delivered more quickly and more cost effectively.  “Most important,
however,” Giddins writes, “it will create an estimated 100,000 new
American jobs.”

Additional letters were addressed to governors: Culver (IA), Baldacci
(ME), Schweitzer (MT), Rell (CT), Quinn (IL), Parkinson (KS), Kulongoski
(OR) and Herbert (UT).

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