Gordon England, a former head of Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth and a former deputy secretary of Defense, says U.S. Rep. Kay Granger (R-Fort Worth) is supremely qualified to head the powerful House Appropriations Committee.
“I’m delighted that Kay has thrown her hat in the ring,” England said. “She is highly qualified, very experienced, and would make a superb and dynamic leader of the House Appropriations Committee.”
The chairman of that committee holds the No. 2 position in the U.S. House of Representatives and, some would argue, a more important position than Speaker of the House.
“Almost all federal money, all appropriated, budgeted money for the federal government, goes through the two Appropriations Committees, the House and the Senate,” England said.
“So they are, in my judgment, the most important and powerful committees in the Congress because they determine the depth and breadth of every government program, every government agency and all the communities throughout America that have any type of federal spending in their districts.”
England was the president and general manager of General Dynamics Fort Worth from mid-1991 to March 1993 and after it was sold to Lockheed he continued as the president of Lockheed Fort Worth until May 1995.
He served twice as secretary of the Navy, as deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and as the 29th deputy secretary of Defense.
He knows the defense industry and he knows Washington, D.C.
Granger already is chairman of the Appropriations panel’s defense subcommittee, a very important position, England said, so it would be a logical step up for her to move up to head the full committee.
“Kay Granger is highly respected and regarded by her peers in Congress and also by the business community,” England said.
“She has more experience than probably anyone in the Congress in terms of length of jobs, length of time, number of jobs, and responsible positions she’s held, and she has an outstanding reputation on the Hill,” England said.
Throw in that she has been a mayor of Fort Worth and a business owner.
“She’s probably the most qualified person you could have in this position. Not only that, she brings a lot of common sense, something that’s not too apparent in Congress these days,” England said. “And that’s lacking among a lot of the members.”
The heads of the Appropriations Committees are frequently consulted by members of the White House staff and by the heads of departments and agencies, England said.
“To some extent that’s the center of everything that’s going to happen in the government because it’s where all the money passes through,” England said.