Congress

Senators speak on NASA center threats

Two Republican members of the US Senate have spoken out recently to defend NASA centers in their states that could be subject to cutbacks or (as some fear) closing. Tuesday’s Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH) acknowledged that this year’s budget battle for NASA Glenn “is going to be a tougher fight.” DeWine admits that “we know we’ll lose some” employees, but is worried about cuts steep enough that would bring the center below a “critical mass” needed to carry out research there.

Meanwhile, Tuesday’s Hampton Roads Daily Press features an op-ed by Sen. George Allen (R-VA), writing in response to an editorial the newspaper published Friday asking readers to speak out to Congress in support of NASA Langley. Allen writes that he and fellow Virginian “representatives in Washington share the newspaper’s concern and are acting to reverse the unwise, harmful proposals related to aeronautics research and development jobs that are essential to the Peninsula and America’s future.” He notes that he inserted a “Sense of the Senate” amendment in a budget bill last week which states the Senate’s “belief that $1.5 billion should be allocated to the new aeronautics vehicle systems programs over the next five years.” Of course, belief is one thing, but funding to support those programs is something else entirely…

4 comments to Senators speak on NASA center threats

  • I think a big part of the problem is that there has been no vision for US aeronautics, no reason for it to exist – it has been adrift with inept leadership for quite some time. A bunch of wind tunnels and a porfolio of delta epsilon incremental improvement programs is insufficient justification for a NASA aeronautics program. In fact it duplicates short term research that is more suitably conducted in industry, thereby harming industry.

    For NASA aeronautics to continue to exist it must play a role in something the aerospace industry cannot or will not do on its own: a wider plan of fundamental transformation for US aerospace. If you believe that cramped Boeing-style passenger aircraft flying at

  • Kevin Parkin

    Apologies – both browsers having severe problems posting to this site, will post missing parts later.

  • Chris Martel

    I hear you Kevin and I couldn’t agree more.