What the presidential candidates, President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, believe about space policy has been the subject of some speculation. Answers to a question posed by Science Debate 2012 provide some illumination.
The answers add very little to specific details of how the space program would operate either in a second Obama term or a Romney presidency.
The question about space
The question about space in Science Debate 2012 is number 12 on the lists provided to both campaigns. It reads, "The United States is currently in a major discussion over our national goals in space. What should America's space exploration and utilization goals be in the 21st century and what steps should the government take to help achieve them?"
Obama recounts his record
The response from the Obama campaign in Science Debate 2012 is basically an account of what it believes to be the president's record in space. It mentions investments in technology and education, extending the life of the International Space Station to 2020, the goal of sending humans to an asteroid by 2025 and to Mars in the 2030s, and the Mars Curiosity rover, which was approved before President Obama took office. The response does not mention the commercial crew program, which provides subsidies for private space firms to build and operate spacecraft.
Romney lays down some principles
The Romney campaign laid down some principles in its answer in Science Debate 2012 about why the candidate thinks space is important. The areas that space impacts include technological innovation, economic growth, national security, and America's international standing. The Romney response accuses the Obama administration of not providing leadership or clear goals. The Romney campaign promises to bring together stakeholders in the space program, both within and outside NASA, to set clear goals for the space agency. International cooperation and revitalizing commercial space are also mentioned.
No new money for NASA under Romney
One of the main takeaways from the Romney answer in Science Debate 2012 is the following, "A strong and successful NASA does not require more funding, it needs clearer priorities. I will ensure that NASA has practical and sustainable missions. There will be a balance of pragmatic and top-priority science with inspirational and groundbreaking exploration programs." This paragraph suggests that under a Romney presidency, NASA funding would remain static, much as it has under the Obama administration. It suggests that Romney believes that better management and clearer goals will squeeze more performance out of NASA under a tight budget.
Vague responses from the campaigns
Thus far the two campaigns have not been very forthcoming about how the space program would proceed in the next four years. The Republican Party Platform provides two paragraph of boilerplate. The Democratic Party Platform devotes a single sentence about NASA's "new mission."
The Orlando Sentinel recently raised questions about the lack of details about space policy coming from the Romney campaign. What space exploration goals does he contemplate? How does he propose to foster the growth of a commercial space industry? And, in light of the suggestion that NASA's budget would not grow under a Romney presidency, how would all of this fit in a limited budget. When the Augustine Committee submitted its report, it suggested that NASA needed to increase its budget from a then annual level of $18 billion to about $21 billion for any meaningful space exploration program to be possible. What sort of program is possible for just over $17 billion a year is open to question.
Mark R. Whittington is the author of Children of Apollo and The Last Moonwalker. He has written on space subjects for a variety of periodicals, including The Houston Chronicle, The Washington Post, USA Today, the L.A. Times, and The Weekly Standard.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-romney-respond-space-science-debate-2012-191900528.html
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