Both of Alaska’s U.S. senators wrote the White House budget director Wednesday asking him to spare the Coast Guard from the budget ax.
According to the Washington Post and other news outlets, President Trump plans to reduce funding for the Coast Guard by nearly 12 percent in his budget request to Congress.
Nearly two dozen U.S. senators signed a letter asking Office of Management and Budget Director John Mulvaney to reconsider. They said such a cut would run counter to the president’s goal of greater military investment and make it harder for the Coast Guard to stop drug traffic. The letter also cites the nation’s need for more icebreakers as Arctic ship traffic increases. Among the 23 senators who signed, the only Republicans were the Alaskans, Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker.
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her atlruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Lizhere.
