During his visit to a Beaufort military installation on Tuesday, Gov. Mark Sanford displayed a keen awareness of the decision-making process that will determine the next round of base closures.

Sanford, who represented S.C.'s First District in the U.S. House of Representatives, not only grew up within earshot of Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, he also represented a district with large military installations.

While Sanford understands the significance of the Beaufort base as the lone example of Marine and Navy aircraft sharing a land base, he understands that the decision will be made by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld based on national defense needs.

The governor made a good point Tuesday, noting that a base's economic impact on a community won't be what the Department of Defense considers during the base closure process. Instead, the Defense Department will examine each base's military capacity and how its role could change in the future.

Thus far Beaufort has capacity for expansion and a relatively sparsely settled area around the air station.

Capability also is excellent. The air space is "relatively uncrowded," which allows pilots to train freely without having to leave the area, the governor said.

Touring the base Tuesday with the governor were members of his Military Base Advisory Committee, which will focus on at least seven installations in four S.C. counties. The committee wants to save all S.C. installations. South Carolina has been hit hard before. Bases were scattered all over South Carolina following World War II. Upstate bases were closed decades ago. In the 1990s, Myrtle Beach Air Force Base and the Charleston Naval Base were closed.

MCAS contributes $228 million to the local economy, more than half the $454 million the military brings to the county annually, according to the Greater Beaufort Chamber of Commerce's Military Enhancement Committee.

To help tell South Carolina's story and to help protect military bases, the General Assembly appropriated $200,000. Beaufort, Columbia and Sumter and Charleston County will receive $50,000 each to fund studies and other efforts to protect local bases.

Sanford said Tuesday that "the local community É is going to great lengths to tell its own story because they have a great story to tell. They do a phenomenal job."

While the community has great rapport with the military and does a great job telling its story, the county's phenomenal growth also is a potential threat.

As the military examines base improvements or expansion, the county government must work hand-in-hand with local government officials to make sure encroachment doesn't become a threat. That includes the school district and the board of education as they make decisions about the location of schools.

While some feel that the bases are Beaufort's to lose, a major obstacle in the path is Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. The Department of Defense estimates the new closures would save as much as $3.5 billion a year.

While $106 million in infrastructure improvements, which include a resurfacing of the runways, should help keep MCAS Beaufort off a closure list, one can't be too positive. It also may be simplistic to think that Rumsfeld would react to slogans similar to "The bases are better in Beaufort," but much can be said about relationships and costs that may have an influence. While the secretary of defense may have the last word, local folks still can have an influence on public opinion. The secretary can get an earful from many people.