Newspaper Page Text
Tribune & Georgian
CM K
Wednesday, March 6,2013
9A
Tribune & Georgian file photo
Congressman Jack Kingston (R-Savannah) accepts a plaque
after a change of command ceremony at Kings Bay Naval
Submarine Base in July 201 I. Kingston called sequestration
“a drop in the bucket” when compared to the country’s
budget and deficit issues.
Cuts
from page 1A
2012 fiscal year budget
numbers because of no cur
rent 2013 budget. In rela
tion to Kings Bay Naval
Submarine Base in Camden
County, the cuts will be the
similar across the entire De
partment of Defense and
each branch of the military.
In a statement released by
Ray Mabus, Secretary of the
Navy, he included some in-
depth ways in which se
quester will affect the Navy.
Training sessions, along
with maintenance to build
ings, equipment and ships
that are not considered ab
solutely vital will be de
ferred. According to Kings
Bay public affairs officer
Scott Bassett, the current
civilian hiring freeze will
continue, along with civilian
furloughs that will take effect
April 22.
Mabus stressed the impor
tance of preserving all sup
port possible for those
already deployed or sta
tioned overseas by canceling
and postponing the cuts of
things that the Navy can af
ford to put off for the time
being.
U.S. Rep. Jack Kingston
(R-Savannah) said that, in his
opinion, cuts are the only so
lution to America’s spending
problem and that the presi
dent has to take some re
sponsibility in the decision.
“President Barack Obama
has mastered a new kind of
politics: Do nothing about a
problem, refuse to meet
with Congress, and then
launch campaign rallies
across the country to com
plain about nothing getting
done,” he said in an opinion
piece written for the Atlanta
Journal-Constitution.
“What he is forgetting to
tell the American people is
that it was his idea in the
first place. He also forgets
to mention that these ‘mas
sive’ cuts amount to less
than 3 cents on the dollar
over 10 years.”
Kingston said in an inter
view Tuesday that the state
of Georgia has cut its
budget over the past four
years and has done so by
making budget cuts in a
“sane and rational manner,”
serving as a good example
for the country overall. He
said that about 500,000 peo
ple even moved to Georgia
during that time period,
meaning the cuts weren’t
deferring citizens from call
ing the Peach State their
home.
Kingston, who serves on
the House Appropriations
Committee that directs fed
eral spending, is also the
chairman of the subcommit
tee on labor, health and
human services, education
and related agencies as well
as a senior member of the
subcommittee on defense.
He said that sequestration
is only “a drop in the
bucket” in relation to the
country’s budget and deficit
issues and added that while
the sequester may not be the
absolute best solution, it’s
the best option to reduce
spending right now.
“The House has acted
twice to replace the cuts
with targeted reductions
and spending reforms,” he
said. “We have passed two
budgets that tackle entitle
ments and put us on the
path to sustainability. The
Senate hasn’t passed a
budget since the iPad was
invented and gas was $1.87
a gallon.”
Kingston said that in rela
tion to the military, flexibil
ity is the most important
quality to consider.
“One thing we certainly
don’t want is readiness to
suffer, training to suffer or
for equipment to be insuffi
cient,” he said. “We want to
make sure there are options
for commanders.”
Examples Kingston
brought up included the
closing of the commissary
for one day a week or cutting
travel that isn’t necessary —
cuts that won’t affect vital
equipment, training or
human safety.
Kingston added that
America is “broke,” which
will influence the current
economy as well as the future
for the nation’s children. He
said that the government will
need to take a stand.
“When Washington
shows leadership and deals
with problems facing our
country, the economy will
soar,” he said. “I know. I was
there when we cut taxes, re
formed welfare, reduced
burdensome regulations and
balanced the budget. We
can do this right with some
dedicated hard work and
honest talk. We don’t need
any more excuses or gim
micks. We need courage and
action.”
Cumberland
feeling effects
of sequestration
Johna Strickland Rush
johna@tribune-georgian.com
National Park Service
employees are trimming
$129,000 from the base
operating budget for
Cumberland Island Na
tional Seashore in the
wake of sequestration.
Staff started planning
for the automatic cuts a
few weeks ago in case
Congress did not reach
an agreement and looked
at eight or nine areas that
could be adjusted sequen
tially if earlier cuts did
not provide enough sav
ings, island superintend
ent Fred Boyles said.
Last on the list were
furloughs for employees,
which seemed possible.
“It appears that that
will not happen,” Boyles
said Tuesday.
Cumberland operates
on a base budget supple
mented by extra money
secured for specific proj
ects that can only be uti
lized for those items.
The cuts include all
travel unless required,
such as law enforcement
refresher courses; all
overtime, which is often
incurred when staff work
weekends to facilitate
volunteer groups.
Can we get by without
them? Yes, we can, but
there will be costs.
— Fred Boyles
superintendent,
Cumberland Island
National Seashore
“We cut a major
amount out of what we’ll
call supplies and equip
ment, which is where we
buy everything from lum
ber and paint to office
supplies,” Boyles said.
Internal contracts have
also been altered. Usu
ally, every park service
boat is pulled out of the
water and examined each
year.
“We’ve decided that
we’re not going to do that
for six of our eight boats,”
Boyles said. “... Doing
that hurts us because
we’re deferring mainte
nance.”
Two permanent posi
tions on the park’s staff
will remain vacant as well.
“Can we get by without
them? Yes, we can, but
there will costs,” Boyles
said.
One of those costs
could be the interpretive
walks offered to visitors.
Committee holding concert to benefit local teenager
Ticket information
Advance tickets are $20; tickets at the door
are $25; student tickets are $10; VIP tickets
are $35. Call (912) 674-7847 for more
information.
The “All Is Well” Tour,
a benefit concert for
Elainna Anderson, will be
held at 7 p.m. Thursday,
March 14, at Young Zion
Baptist Church. A pre-re
ception will be held 6 to 7
p.m.
Anderson was diagnosed
with Type I Juvenile Dia
betes at the age of 12.
Since that time she has
spent countless hours in
and out of the hospital.
Due to her condition,
she has lost sight in her
right eye and 75 percent in
the left eye. She is
presently being adminis
tered dialysis treatments at
home every night for seven
to nine hours.
She recently found out
that she may lose both of
her kidneys and will be
placed on the kidney
donor’s list at Mayo Clinic.
Until then, she will con
tinue receiving treatments.
Anderson’s medical ex
penses thus far are esti
mated to be more than
$30,000 and more for eye
care/surgeries, in and out
patient hospital stays,
medicine, supplies and nu
merous doctor/specialist
visits (kidney, internal, di
abetes, etc.).
The DIVA committee,
along with other caring in
dividuals, want to help An
derson in her time of need.
Advance tickets for the
concert are $20, tickets at
the door are $25 and stu
dent tickets are $10. VIP
tickets are $35, which in
cludes a signed autograph
CD, light foods at the re
ception and preferred seat
ing.
Ticket locations are
Kingsland Welcome Cen
ter, $t. Marys Welcome
Center, Kingsland City
Hall and Big Al’s Barber
$hop.
Anderson is the daugh
ter of Veronica Sullivan
Oglesby and Lindsey An
derson. Her paternal
grandparents are Deacon
Daniel and Minister Bar
bara Sullivan of Wood
bine, and her maternal
grandparent is Loverta
Anderson of Kingsland.
$he is also the great-
granddaughter of Bessie
Lee Dawson of Kingsland
and the late Deacon Isaac
Dawson and John Sullivan.
$he is a member of the
Georgia Avenue Church of
God under the leadership
of Dr. Arthur Dawson Jr.
and Minister Lucille Daw
son.
Young Zion Baptist
Church is located at 4500
E. Highway 40 in $t.
Marys. For more informa
tion, call (912) 674-7847.
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