CHEYENNE, Wyo. — In a close vote, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) heroically managed to halt plans to end production of the “Humvee” line of military vehicles, saving the program from being scrapped due to budget cuts. In a coincidence some observers are calling "really, really accidental," the vote also saves as many as 20,000 jobs in Barrasso's home state.
The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV), or "Humvee," has been the military's primary transportation and patrol vehicle platform since 1983. It is manufactured by AM General, which, in another complete coincidence, donated over $600,000 to Barrasso’s “Strength, Leadership, Understanding, Stability, Honor” PAC.
“The HMMWV is a tried and true military all-purpose vehicle which is in no way outdated and has certainly not led to hundreds of thousands of injuries and deaths due to its lack of armor, ridiculously wide wheel base, and terrible cornering,” said Barrasso at a $30,000-a-plate donor brunch in Manhattan Thursday.
Barrasso paused to accept a wedding anniversary present of a fourteen-year-old Filipina from a union representative.
