Panel blocks plan to eliminate Northwest Air Guard

The Seattle Times reports the federal Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC)commission shuffled personnel and aircraft around dozens of units, but did not transfer 15 F-15 fighter jets from the 142nd Fighter Wing patrolling the Northwest's skies from an Oregon Air National Guard base at Portland International Airport to bases in New Jersey and Louisiana, as Defense Secretary Donal Rumsfeld had recommended.

Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., welcomed the commission's decision: "This was the right call to make. The Pentagon's original plan would have left Northwest skies vulnerable."

So, if this unit is based in Oregon, why is Cantwell crowing? It turns out, while Oregon Senators Smith and Wyden both testified against the transfer, Ms. Cantwell, uh, wrote a letter.