"Boeing said the 7E7 can't be a tanker....."
Would that be the same Boeing who are deperate to flog the 767 tanker in large numbers to the USAF, so that the line stays open and the dollar$ roll in? Hardly likely to queer that pitch by saying "Of course we can make a KC-7E7".
Of course if they really can't, Airbus would certainly be able to provide the USAF with the A330 tanker......... 244K lb of gas as against 202K in the 767 - and it doesn't need a 12000 ft balanced field runway to get airborne at that weight either!
Boeing said it? Well, that must mean it's true..............