Government Of, By, And For Whom?

by Turkana

Reuters:

Big-ticket warplane programs run by Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Boeing Co (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) received a boost Wednesday as the 2009 military budget wended its way through the U.S. Congress.

A House of Representatives Armed Services subcommittee recommended $3.9 billion to buy 15 Boeing C-17 cargo planes, although the Bush administration sought none and the Senate Armed Services Committee did not fund any.

Likewise, the House's Air and Land Forces subcommittee recommended an additional $523 million as a down payment on 20 more Lockheed F-22 fighters in fiscal 2010.

The Bush administration had deferred decisions on both the C-17 and F-22 production lines, leaving the next president, to be elected Nov. 4 and take office in January, to decide their fate.