White House Commends the Senate for Not Including Alternate Engine Funding

The White House issued its Statement of Administration Policy this morning on the Senate's Defense Appropriations bill. The statement commends the Senate for not including funding for the alternate engine, which could result in a veto of the entire bill.

The Administration commends the Committee for its support for the termination of programs that are no longer needed or are not performing as intended. The Administration appreciates that the Committee does not include unrequested funding for three such programs that could result in a veto – unrequested advance procurement funding for the F-22 fighter aircraft, the continued development of the Joint Strike Fighter Alternate Engine, and additional funding for the VH-71 Presidential Helicopter Program. The Congress is urged to oppose funding these programs during floor action and in conference.

As President Obama said when he presented his budget in May: "In addition, we're going to save money by eliminating unnecessary defense programs that do nothing to keep us safe - but rather prevent us from spending money on what does keep us safe. One example is a $465 million program to build an alternate engine for the Joint Strike Fighter. The Defense Department is already pleased with the engine it has. The engine it has works. The Pentagon does not want - and does not plan to use - the alternative version."

The full Statement of Administration Policy is here.