I believe the human exploitation of space is as important an initiative as any other major policy, actually derived from domestic and foriegn policy areas. The problem, I think, is that human space activities are still seen as methods to make science fiction dreams and wonder come alive for its own sake, to provide an interesting diversion to everyday Earthly concerns. The scientific missions also provide a degree of this, for the public is well aware of the cool images from Hubble and Mars rovers, but probably knows little about Gravity Probe B, which is not expected to provide sexy images at all (despite the fact that discoveries by the probe could be very significant).

The objective is to parcel out human space activity in some way that distinguishes it as a tertiary policy arena (together with domestic and foreign affairs). By doing this smartly, one can cast space initiatives as part of a long-term comprehensive plan with a level of legitimacy necessary for carrying out major decisions with long-term budget implications. Today, space remains the sub-sub-subset of some random technology office, where it doesn’t belong.