On Sunday both Florida Today and the Orlando Sentinel published editorials congratulating the House Appropriations Committee for approving a spending bill last week that gave NASA more money than both the agency received in FY2007 and what the White House requested in its FY2008 budget proposal. The Florida Today editorial goes so far as to assign virtually all the credit to local Congressman Dave Weldon, for his “hard pushing” that “gained the support of Democrats who control the powerful Appropriations Committee.” If it really is Weldon who deserves the credit for the additional funding, then it was clearly with a different selling approach than the one he used when he complained earlier this year about the FY07 continuing resolution and asked “whether the Democratic leaders will restore NASA’s budget.” Both editorials, not surprisingly, also mention Weldon’s amendment that requires NASA to provide more details about the shuttle-CEV workforce transition, a “farsighted step” in the eyes of the Sentinel.
Gotta love local congressional grandstanding. The fact that these appropriation bills will be vetoed by Bush and are thus little more than placeholders for the real budget process that will start later this year does not get mentioned in either editorial. It’s kind of like having an older teenage child thump their chest about completing an application to a college they have no hope of getting into.
“Both editorials, not surprisingly, also mention Weldon’s amendment that requires NASA to provide more details about the shuttle-CEV workforce transition, a “farsighted step†in the eyes of the Sentinel.”
To the extent that the amendment results in a real workforce plan that identifies the “must retain” positions and people and a strategy for doing so, the amendment would be a good thing. To the extent that the amendment results in another “keep all NASA field centers fully employed” exercise that burdens the future Ares I/Orion budget with more of Shuttle’s costs, the amendment is a waste of time.
FWIW…