U.S. Rep. Charlie Norwood said Monday it's not time to panic about Fort Gordon's future.

"We've had way too many doom-and-gloom scenarios about what the future of Fort Gordon is," the Augusta Republican said at a meeting of the Augusta Kiwanis Club. "It's not going to be easy, but we have everything in the world going for us.

"What I don't want for us to do for the next two years is grandstanding with wild projections about the future."

Speaking about the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure round, Mr. Norwood told an audience of more than 100 that the process presents a good opportunity to grow and expand the post - in addition to rallying around Fort Gordon.

"We have every good reason, I truly believe, to grow this fort," he said. "And you can't grow it without a BRAC. I can't go legislate to move one fort to another."

Mr. Norwood said that despite legislative attempts to jettison and alter the 2005 closings in Congress, they are is going to happen.

Congress is considering a regulation, as part of a larger defense appropriations bill, that would alter the realignment and closure process by requiring the secretary of defense to name half of U.S. military bases as vital to national defense.

Bases named to that list would be untouchable by the nine-member Base Realignment and Closure Commission.

"This list we'd definitely want to be on," Mr. Norwood said.

He said he did not oppose having a round of base closures, which was under fire by House Democrats last week.

"I think BRAC is appropriate for the taxpayers," he said. "We have to realign, and this is the only way I can think of that we can grow."

Strengthening Fort Gordon includes attracting new missions to the base - and even "stealing" missions from other bases that might be better performed at Fort Gordon, Mr. Norwood said.

He would not identify any potential bases from which to move missions to Fort Gordon.

Mr. Norwood said the best way that Augusta-area residents can help protect Fort Gordon is to financially support the CSRA Alliance for Fort Gordon, which he helped spearhead, and to volunteer to help the group.

Reach Jeremy Craig at (706) 823-3409.