John Ensign calls for probe into Internet claim

By Lisa Mascaro

Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009 | 6:35 p.m.

WASHINGTON -- The proxy war between Nevada’s two senators has taken various twists over the years as Sen. John Ensign rose in Republican leadership and Sen. Harry Reid became the majority leader.

But on Wednesday, a new chapter unfolded as Ensign called on the Senate Armed Services Committee to investigate whether the Obama administration improperly threatened closure of a Nebraska Air Force Base to prod that state’s wavering Democratic senator to vote for health care reform.

The claim has been circulating on the Web for several days, citing unnamed Hill sources saying the administration threatened to put the Offutt Air Force Base in southeastern Nebraska on a future Base Realignment and Closure list unless Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska voted for the health care legislation.

Both the White House and the senator denied this week the report was true, according to the Omaha World-Herald.

“To be perfectly clear: these rumors are completely baseless and false,” White House communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said in a statement. He called the claim “absurd.”

Nelson has been in multiple talks with the White House, but said no one from the administration has discussed Offutt’s future in connection with health care talks, according to the Omaha World-Herald. He also said his vote is not for sale.

Ensign, however, believes an investigation is warranted.

Ensign and 19 other Republican senators submitted a letter to the Democratic chairman and ranking Republican of the Armed Services Committee calling for a hearing to investigate the issue.

“We do not want to see the name of a base from our state on a BRAC list and think it has been put there to settle partisan scores,” they wrote.

Providing sweeteners to pass legislation is nothing new in Washington. Reid secured an additional $100 million in Medicaid funds for hurricane-hit Louisiana in an earlier draft of the health care bill. Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu had been among those Democrats withholding their support of the bill earlier this month, but eventually voted to advance the bill.

The claim circulating this week also said Nelson was being offered a blank check for his state as Reid is huddled in negotiations to secure 60 votes to pass the health care bill.

Offutt is the home of U.S. Strategic Command, which employs 2,700, including those from four branches of the service and civilian personnel. It handles the nation’s space and nuclear global defense.

No word from the Armed Services Committee if it will be taking up the issue.