Hillary Clinton Declares War on Space Exploration

Recently, Senator Hillary Clinton revealed her science agenda. Of great interest to people involved in making and debating space policy were the three bullets concerning the space program. To be brief and to the point, Hillary's agenda would be terrible news for anyone who supports space exploration and space commerce.

The items in Hillary's agenda that concern space follow:

"Hillary will enhance American leadership in space, including:

"Pursuing an ambitious 21st century Space Exploration Program, by implementing a balanced strategy of robust human spaceflight, expanded robotic spaceflight, and enhanced space science activities.

"Developing a comprehensive space-based Earth Sciences agenda, including full funding for NASA's Earth Sciences program and a space-based Climate Change Initiative that will help us secure the scientific knowledge we need to combat global warming.

"Promoting American leadership in aeronautics by reversing funding cuts to NASA's and FAA's aeronautics R&D budget."

On the surface, the Hillary Clinton space agenda appears to be long on platitudes and short on substance. But then, upon closer examination, one begins to have cause for alarm.

The phrase "a balanced strategy of robust human spaceflight, expanded robotic spaceflight, and enhanced space science activities" stands out because of the complaints that have been advanced by certain people, especially in the scientific community, that the current NASA program is "unbalanced." By that it is meant that too much money is being spent on President Bush's space exploration initiative at the expense of space science, Earth science, and aeronautics.

So, Hillary Clinton proposes to have "enhanced space science activities", "full funding for NASA's Earth Sciences program", and reverse "funding cuts to NASA's and FAA's aeronautics funding R&D budget." There are just two ways to accomplish this.

The first way is to add money to NASA funding and distribute the money accordingly. The United States Senate, by a unanimous consent vote, essentially proposed to do just that by adding a billion dollars in emergency spending to the 2008 NASA budget. Ironically Senator Clinton was a cosponsor of the amendment.

The second way is to gut funding for the exploration account and redistribute the money to space science, Earth science, and aeronautics. This appears to be, according to the New York Times, the approach that Hillary Clinton will pursue as President.

"But in a telephone interview afterward, she said that in the short term she would subordinate Bush administration proposals for human exploration of the Moon and Mars to restoring cuts in aeronautics research and space-based studies of climate change and other earth science issues.

"Travel to the Moon or Mars 'excites people,' she said, 'but I am more focused on nearer-term goals I think are achievable.'"

In effect, Senator Clinton has declared war on President Bush's space exploration initiative. This proposal is consistent with policies enacted by President Bill Clinton, which not only cancelled the first President Bush's space exploration initiative but made even the mention of voyages to the Moon and Mars all but forbidden at NASA.

The second aspect of Senator Clinton's space agenda that should prove alarming is what is not in it. There is no mention of encouraging space commercialization. President Bush has enacted a number of initiatives, including the Commercial Orbital Transportation Systems program, designed to encourage the development of privately built and operated space craft.

Senator Clinton's ignoring of commercial space is also consistent with the policies of President Bill Clinton. NASA was particularly hostile to commercial space during President Clinton's administration. Senator Clinton's plans to increase taxes "on the rich" would not be welcome news to wealthy entrepreneurs like Elon Musk, Burt Rutan, and Robert Bigelow who are staking their personal wealth to open up the high frontier of space to commercial development.

If Senator Hillary Clinton becomes President, the dreams of a return of American astronaut explorers to the Moon, Mars, and beyond will be deferred once again, certainly for many years, perhaps forever. The next explorer to walk on the Moon, as NASA Administrator Michael Griffin has warned a number of times, may be a citizen of the Peoples' Republic of China, whose allegiance will be to a totalitarian regime.

The world would certainly take note that while America faltered and hung back, another country which seeks to supplant the United States as the sole super power surged ahead. What a tragedy that would be.

Hillary Clinton's intention to cut back funding on the space exploration initiative offers an opportunity for her opponents, should they choose to take it, The exploration plan enjoys wide support among the public according to most polling data. Eeven more important the exploration initiative has a great deal of bipartisan support in the Congress. If Senator Clinton can be called on her anti space exploration position, she can be made to suffer some political harm.