Cheney List Could Cool Congress’s Budget-Trim Ardor : Defense: ‘Illustrative cuts’ are aimed at showing lawmakers how current proposals could result in drastic job losses and economic setbacks.

Defense Secretary Dick Cheney supplied fresh ammunition Monday to those opposing deep cuts in his budget, listing how proposals in the House and Senate could result in a slew of slashes in troop alignments, job-rich weapon systems and military construction projects.

Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-N.M.), who requested the list of “illustrative cuts,” suggested it would be used to fight spending plans sponsored by House Budget Committee Chairman Leon E. Panetta (D-Carmel Valley), Senate Budget Committee Chairman Jim Sasser (D-Tenn.) and Sen. Ernest F. Hollings (D-S.C.).

Such cuts “would be a mistake,” said Domenici, top-ranking Republican on the Senate panel, which today will begin debating an overall federal budget for fiscal 1991.

Although Congress, not Cheney, will decide all specific cuts, there are practical limits to lawmakers’ options. Thus, by giving lawmakers a list of certain possibilities--including 250 military construction projects that represent thousands of jobs--Cheney might dampen budget-cutting ardor. At the same time, he obviously hoped to steer Congress away from vulnerable targets such as the B-2 Stealth bomber, which he did not list as an illustrative cut.

In a letter to Domenici, Cheney argued that President Bush’s 1991 spending proposal already calls for “major reductions” in the current force, including a cut of 91,000 troops, the deactivation of two Army divisions and the termination of 12 weapons programs.

A House Budget Committee plan approved last week would chop Bush’s proposed 1991 outlays by $7.9 billion and multi-year contract authority by $23.9 billion.

Cheney said that such cuts might require the layoff of 100,000 additional troops and the elimination of two more Army divisions, a carrier battle group, a Navy air wing, a Marine Corps expeditionary brigade and four Air Force tactical air wings.

The House plan also has the “potential” of freezing “Star Wars” antimissile funding at this year’s $3.8-billion level and deferring production of one Trident submarine, two Seawolf submarines, five Aegis destroyers and the LHD Marine helicopter, Cheney said.

Moreover, he added, it could force cuts in various plane and missile programs and wipe out construction projects at many installations, including these in California: Advanced Weapons Lab, China Lake, $18 million; “military operations in urbanized terrain,” Camp Pendleton Marine Base, $11 million; Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, $7 million; Cody Storage Warehouse, San Diego, $9 million, and Vandenberg Air Force Base, $19 million.

Sasser will submit a proposal to his Senate budget panel today that would cut even deeper than the House plan--$11.6 billion in outlays, $25.9 billion in contract authority.

Cheney said that could translate into a troop cut of 150,000 below Bush’s proposal and the elimination of three Army divisions, two carrier battle groups, two Navy air wings, two Marine brigades and five Air Force tactical air wings.

Sasser’s plan also could force the termination of the C-17 cargo plane being developed by McDonnell Douglas in Long Beach, the secretary said.

The proposal by Hollings--a leading congressional figure on defense issues--is tailored to hit hardest at troop levels. Thus, Cheney said in analyzing the potential impact of the $10.8 billion in outlay reductions and $14.2 billion in contract authority cuts, it might force the layoff of 150,000 troops and the elimination of six Army divisions, three carrier battle groups, three Navy air wings, four Marine Corps brigades and eight Air Force tactical air wings.