SHAHEEN MEETS WITH PNSY WORKERS FOLLOWING DOD BASE CLOSURE REQUEST

(Portsmouth, N.H.) – In the wake of the U.S. Department of Defense’s request for Congress to authorize additional base closures under the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) met with workers at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard today to express her support for the vital role the Shipyard plays in our national security. 

“I came here today to let all the workers and stakeholders at the Shipyard know that the Senators from New Hampshire and Maine are behind them 100 percent, and that the Shipyard has our full, bipartisan support,” said Shaheen.  “At this point we don’t know where this process is headed, but we wanted to let everyone at the Shipyard know we’re going to be vigilant from Day 1.  We know the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard is a critical component of our nation’s security and that its workers are the best in the nation at what they do.

“Going through the base closure process doesn’t make sense right now.  We are in the middle of reviewing our entire military structure.  We can’t make smart decisions about base closures until we’ve gone through that.”

Shaheen joined U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) in a joint statement of support for the shipyard yesterday.  Shaheen is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, which will have jurisdiction over any legislation to start the BRAC process.