Lawmakers: Carrier fleet should be exempt from cuts

Although the military is getting smaller, lawmakers representing Virginia say the nation's fleet of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers - and the massive industry required to support them - should be exempt from defense cuts.

All 13 members of the state's congressional delegation, including Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, have signed a letter reaffirming their support for maintaining an 11-carrier fleet. It's being sent to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel today, more than a year after he warned that sweeping defense cuts could force the Pentagon to mothball three aircraft carriers.

Since then, Congress has passed legislation to continue funding work at Newport News Shipbuilding, the only private shipyard in the country that builds and overhauls aircraft carriers.

Cutting even a single carrier from the Navy's fleet would deal a significant blow to Virginia's economy, but that isn't the argument being presented by the state's lawmakers. In their letter, they argued that 11 carriers are essential for national defense.

"The deployment of our carrier fleet to numerous conflict zones across the globe last year further demonstrates why we must continue to invest in this critical capability," they wrote.

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