Trump Cancels New Order for Air Force One due to Cost Overruns

[UNC71-00]

That's the kind of thing that I wanted to see out of him when I voted. He's making the bureaucracy accountable and particularly noteworthy is that he is calling the Air Force out for planes that would be for the Executive branch. Gives him street cred when he takes a swipe at some liberal congressman's pet earmark for the arts or some study on some bs topic.


The contract for the planes was projected at about $3 billion, but costs have been reported to be rising. The Air Force had previously earmarked $1.65 billion for two new jets, but hadn’t detailed costs beyond that. Boeing was the sole builder to bid on the planes, The Wall Street Journal reported.

ETA- before some fact checker swoops in to tell me I am wrong, yes, I know he didn't actually cancel the order yet because he is not actually president yet. But he sent a strong signal.

How can anyone think this is a bad move? Even our resident Trump haters must be on board with this, right?

 

[heelbent]

How can anyone think this is a bad move? Even our resident Trump haters must be on board with this, right?

I'd almost bet on that. But I won't.

 

[tarheel0910]

That's the kind of thing that I wanted to see out of him when I voted. He's making the bureaucracy accountable and particularly noteworthy is that he is calling the Air Force out for planes that would be for the Executive branch. Gives him street cred when he takes a swipe at some liberal congressman's pet earmark for the arts or some study on some bs topic.


The contract for the planes was projected at about $3 billion, but costs have been reported to be rising. The Air Force had previously earmarked $1.65 billion for two new jets, but hadn’t detailed costs beyond that. Boeing was the sole builder to bid on the planes, The Wall Street Journal reported.

ETA- before some fact checker swoops in to tell me I am wrong, yes, I know he didn't actually cancel the order yet because he is not actually president yet. But he sent a strong signal.

How can anyone think this is a bad move? Even our resident Trump haters must be on board with this, right?

Well, we don't really know enough about AF1 to know how good of a move this is or isn't. I want to make sure that any president is safe when they fly, so we need to make sure we have the best technology and capability on the plane. If it's cheaper/possible to retrofit the current plane then just do that, but if it's more expensive or not possible to retrofit then get a new plane. Of course, it will be impossible to ever know that since most of the security and tech is classified.

 

[UNC71-00]

Well, we don't really know enough about AF1 to know how good of a move this is or isn't. I want to make sure that any president is safe when they fly, so we need to make sure we have the best technology and capability on the plane. If it's cheaper/possible to retrofit the current plane then just do that, but if it's more expensive or not possible to retrofit then get a new plane. Of course, it will be impossible to ever know that since most of the security and tech is classified.

Oh FFS. Do you really think he is going to compromise necessary safety?:

Overruns had doubled the cost. Trump is signaling that he isn't going to put up with that BS, whether it's on a plane for the president to use or whether it is for any other government project. By finding something in his own domain to go after first, he now can go after other bloated spending programs and get less pushback.

 

[tarheel0910]

Oh FFS. Do you really think he is going to compromise necessary safety?:

Probably not, but I seriously doubt he knows enough about the current AF1 capabilities and the future AF1 capabilities to be able to make a proper decision. Hell, I doubt Obama has enough understanding to be able to make that decision. If the AF (or whoever knows the most about the plane) says he needs it, then it's probably a good idea to listen to them. He also has the option of renegotiating the contract with Boeing as well.

 

[UNC71-00]

Probably not, but I seriously doubt he knows enough about the current AF1 capabilities and the future AF1 capabilities to be able to make a proper decision. Hell, I doubt Obama has enough understanding to be able to make that decision. If the AF (or whoever knows the most about the plane) says he needs it, then it's probably a good idea to listen to them. He also has the option of renegotiating the contract with Boeing as well.

I'm sure neither Obama nor Trump has any idea as to the technical specifications.

What Trump does know is that if Boeing bids $1.5B, they better not come back saying "whoops, we meant $3B. Sorry about that." Especially when Airbus wasn;t even allowed to bid.

 

[tarheel0910]

Especially when Airbus wasn;t even allowed to bid.

That's something that Trump needs to highlight as well. All these contracts that the government just gives out without even taking bids from multiple companies is just dumb.

 

[Hark_The_Sound_2010]

I must say I like the signal this sends.

"Sorry boys, the 'take the government for all its worth in project fees' gravy train has left the station"

 

[TARGOLF]

This means he won't take bribes to let them over charge the tax payers. Love the move Trump is doing to send a message to the ones who wants contracts

 

[coolwaterunc]

Oh FFS.

That was a g7 response.

 

[Raising Heel]

How can anyone think this is a bad move? Even our resident Trump haters must be on board with this, right?

I loathe Trump -- mostly for personal reasons, not political ones -- but as a fiscal conservative I applaud the move. So should every working stiff who's tired of seeing the government lop 30% off the top of every paycheck.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

I like this thread because there's no dick pics in it.

 

[chick_bleeds_carolina_blue]

I like this thread because there's no dick pics in it.

Me too. I'm not joking either. No one likes those pics despite what many goofballs believe. (Being serious).