Ayotte charges Air Force probing talks with Hill
The Air Force is investigating troops who have talked with members of Congress or their staff about the politically embattled A-10 attack jet, Sen. Kelly Ayotte said Wednesday. Ayotte told Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh, testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, about what she called a âreverse investigationâ by officials in the Air Combat Command after one of its top leaders reportedly told airmen theyâd be committing âtreasonâ if they talked with Congress about the A-10 Warthog. The command wants to find out who has been talking with congressional aides, Ayotte suggested. Story Continued Below The vice commander, Maj. Gen. James Post, reportedly told an audience of Air Force leaders earlier this month theyâd be guilty of âtreasonâ if they talked with Congress about the A-10 because service officials want to retire it. He also reportedly told an audience that heâd deny the remarks if asked about them. Someone in the room described the comments to an Air Force-centric blog, which led to news coverage in Arizona and elsewhere. Ayotte, whose husband was an A-10 pilot and has been an outspoken advocate for saving the jet, told Welsh on Wednesday that she found the story troubling. âIt worries me about the climate and tone that is set when airmen and women are told theyâd be committing âtreasonâ for communicating with us,â Ayotte told Welsh. âWhat Iâm hearing is thereâs actually an investigation going on in reverse as to whoâs communicating with Congress. I hope that there will be no punishment for any kind of pursuit of people trying to communicate with Congress.â Welsh said he wasnât aware of any âreverse investigationâ and affirmed that troops have a legal right to communicate with Congress. âI know of nothing along those lines at all,â he said. âI would be astonished by that. I am not a part of that, [Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James] is not a part of that. I would not condone it.â Welsh said the Defense Departmentâs inspector general is conducting an investigation into Postâs comments and pledged that he and James would present its findings to Congress when theyâre complete. For now, Welsh said there are no restrictions on what Air Force personnel may discuss with Congress. âI completely commit to lawful communication with Congress,â he said. âI support any airmanâs right to communicate anything you would ask them.â The Air Force is expected to renew its request to Congress to retire its roughly 300 A-10s in the Pentagonâs budget submission due to Congress on Monday. Welsh and other officials say they appreciate the value of the A-10 in close air support, but argue that budget pressures mean the only way to get real savings is to get rid of entire fleets of aircraft, including their training pipelines and support infrastructure.