FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Clinton/gore Email OCTOBER 23, 1992 BUSH WAFFLES ON DEFENSE There are few issues George Bush won't flip-flop on, and defense policy is certainly no exception. Bush, in his increasingly desperate trillion-dollar spending spree, has already reversed his position on national defense issues like the upgrade of the M1 tank, sale of F-16 fighters to Taiwan, and nuclear test bans. Today, reversing a long-held policy, the Administration announced it would continue the V- 22 Osprey. For three years, Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney has expressed strong opposition to the V-22, calling it "an unproven program I don't need." It's hard to trust Bush's conversion less than two weeks before Election Day -- if he can so easily reverse course, what prevents him from doubling back if re-elected? Bill Clinton has consistently supported flexible, rapidly deployable forces that are tailored to meeting post-Cold War threats. Clinton understands that the V-22 is an important part of an overall strategy to strengthen our armed forces. It's time to reject George Bush's waffling, and elect president ready to meet today's challenges. Here are a few of the Waffle King's greatest hits: M1 UPGRADE: FLIP: Earlier this year, Bush proposed that funds appropriated for the upgrade of the M-1 tank be "rescinded", which allows the Defense Department to avoid spending money Congress appropriates. In other words, he refused to spend the money Congress told him was necessary for the project. [The New York Times, 9/3/92] FLOP: On August 28, Quayle announced the decision to begin a multi-billion dollar program to upgrade the tanks, stating, "This should be welcome news to the Warren tank facility." [The New York Times, 9/3/92] F-15 SALES: FLIP: On September 8, 1992, Bush criticized Clinton for supporting the sale of F-15 fighter planes to Saudi Arabia, and said, "No decision has been made." [Bush speech, B'nai B'rith, 9/8/92] FLOP: At a September 11 rally at the McDonnell Douglas firm in St. Louis, Bush announced the sale of 72 F-15s to Saudi Arabia, worth an estimated $9 billion. [New York Times, 9/12/92] FORT DIX: FLIP: Fort Dix, in New Jersey, had been slated for conversion to a summer and weekend training camp for reservists and the national guard. [New York Times, 9/28/92] FLOP: Bush, in a speech before the United Nations, proposed using New Jersey's Fort Dix to train peacekeepers. [AP, 9/21/92] F-16 SALES: FLIP: Reagan-Bush administrations have blocked the sale of F-16 fighter planes to Taiwan for 11 years. [AP, 9/3/92] FLOP: At a September 3 rally at the General Dynamics firm in Fort Worth, TX, Bush announced approval for the sale of 150 F-16s to Taiwan. [AP, 9/3/92] SEAWOLF: FLIP: Without naming him, Bush accused Clinton of pandering to defense industry workers in Connecticut when Clinton expressed his support for the Seawolf submarine program in March 1992. Bush's FY 1993 budget eliminated funding for the program and proposed rescinding funds for two subs that Congress had already approved. [Boston Globe, 3/24/92; Hartford Courant, 2/1/92] FLOP: While Bush was announcing his recommendation to stop building the Seawolf, the Navy ordered 13 Seawolf contractors to continue work on the project. NBC News cited unnamed Navy officials who said Clinton was "correct" when he said it was "wasteful" to cancel the contracts. Pentagon officials "swear the decision was not political" and say it will save taxpayers money to let some of the contracts continue. [NBC News, 4/1/92] NUCLEAR TESTING: FLIP: A letter from Brent Scrowcroft, Dick Cheney, and James Watkins clearly stated the Bush Administration position that "we believe a [nuclear] testing moratorium would not be in our Nation's security interest." [Letter to Rep. Bennett Johnston, 9/22/9; Congressional Record, 9/24/92] FLOP: On October 2, 1992, Bush signed into law the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, which included a nuclear test ban. [Statement by the President, 10/2/92] -- 30 --