WASHINGTON — Sen. Barry Goldwater made public Tuesday a list of 22 military facilities around the country that he said could be closed for a savings of $500 million a year if the White House were willing to endorse so politically unpopular an idea.
Goldwater, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that the list had been provided by Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger in response to Goldwater's request for ways to cut defense spending.
But the document Goldwater released noted that it "should not be considered an official Department of Defense representation," even though it was prepared by the Pentagon.
Last month, the Arizona Republican suggested that closing obsolete bases was one way to cut defense spending. But at that time he did not cite any specific bases.