Conference 7.286::space

I saw JK last night in Nashua.  As we was being walked out by his handlers, I
managed to get in a quick question while shaking his hand.  I said approx:

"Senator, how do you feel about the civilian space program?  Are we spending
too much?  Too little?"

His answer (approx.):

"I love it.  I'm a big supporter of NASA.  I'm especially in favor of the science
and technology part over the exploration.  We're probably spending a bit too
little."

I can't remember his exact words (maybe Brian McCarthy can help?).  I don't
remember what he said coming across as negatively about exploration as it sounds
in what I wrote.  It just sounded like he was more interested in keeping the
country in the forefront of technology.

Burns
(Who loves living in New Hampshire every 4 years)

In Tsongas' booklet, "An Economic Call to Arms", he says that we have to spur
technology, and mentions NASA as being in the forefront of technology.

I have not asked him in person.

Burns

I have not spoken to him personally, but in an interview on "All Things
Considered" (Public Radio news show), he responded to a question about his
image as "Governor Moonbeam" by making a strong pro-space statement.  His
campaign slogan 4 years ago was

"Something1, something2, Explore the Universe"

Burns

    Since this year is Election Year in the UK, too, how about any
    information on what, if anything, our political paries think about
    space activities?
    
    Back when I worked in the UK "space industry" (ho-hum), our Government
    created the British National Space Centre, which it gave the task of
    developing a British space plan. Two years later, after this
    organisation had waited 9 months for our Iron Lady to get around to
    reading their report, they were told to take a running jump for their
    efforts. They dared to suggest increasing the British space budget
    above the �112 million or so which was the current level of funding at
    the time (and probably still is, knowing how our bean-counters work).
    
    So what, if anything, does anyone know of the present space plans of
    our political stuffed shirts? Do they amount to anything more
    intelligent than "there's plenty of space in the North of England"?
    
    Also, residents of any other countries where there are elections this
    year might like to add their politicians' views to this topic. Let's
    pool information, and see where the world as a whole is likely to be
    heading, space-wise.
    
    Dave Hazel

    re .4:  Absolutely.  I think any candidate is fair game.  I would just
    not like this to degenerate into flaming and complaining about
    government policies in general.
    
    Anyway:  Sen. Tom Harkin (US Democratic Presidential Candidate)
    
    I just saw him in Milford and asked him his feeling about the space
    program in general and whether people in space were emphasized too much
    or too little.
    
    He said he recently voted to cut back NASA.  He did not think it should
    be shut down by any means, and cited earth resource sats as an
    important thing, but said we had to make choices, and his choice was to
    cut back on space.  He said we emphasized people in space too much at
    the expense of machines.
    
    Burns
    

    I just saw Gov. Bill Clinton.  Before I got to ask, another person
    asked something like "What will we do with all the high-tech jobs that
    will be lost because of reducing the defense budget.  Is space a place
    to redirect these people?"
    
    Clinton said space was a possible place, but then went on to say that
    he thought a lot of these people could be put into environmentally
    related stuff, not to mention computers, etc etc.
    
    When I got my chance I asked specifically how the civilian space
    program would fare under a Clinton budget.  Would it get more, less, or
    about the same as now.  His answer was that he didn't have a position
    paper on space, but that he thought it would get more than currently.
    "There is a lot more out there to discover".  (Approx. quote).
    
    Note that every one of the candidates I have talked to have had only
    about a 4 sentence answer to this question, while they often go on at
    great lengths with other questions.  It is clear that even for those who
    say the budget should increase, space is not in the front of their
    minds.  (I don't suppose this is a surprise!)
    
    Burns
    
    
    Burns
    

  The problem is that it's a "can't win" question. Democrats who support an
increase in space research risk enraging the pro-entitlement faction while
labor doesn't feel strongly one way or the other so they loose support from one
large part of their constituency while not gaining much from the other. 

  For Republicans it doesn't add that much support from business while it
alienates the fiscal conservatives who want to balance the budget. Again, it
doesn't play well for the people who pay their bills. 

  Engineers and astronomers, love space research as do kids, Scifi fans and 
other groups but those are not people who organize fund raisers for politicians
from either party. 

  George

    I hope the US can find a consensus among its politicians and citizens
    for ways to continue its highly successful space programme. Although it
    has cost a lot in financial terms, I am sure it has had the effect of
    dragging technology up by its bootstraps. The net effect of this can
    only have been beneficial to the United States.
    
    A few years ago, India had a very forward-looking space programme. Are
    there any Indian noters who can tell us how things are going over
    there, now? I am out of touch nowadays, but I remember something about
    a programme to equip remote communities with satellite receivers, so
    that they could be kept in touch with the rest of the country. Is this
    programme still going on, and if so, how is it progressing? What do the
    country's present leaders seem to think of the space industry?
    
    Dave Hazel

It looks like (wonder of wonders) Clinton/Gore may be trying to space into
something of an issue.  And they are even sort of on our side.

Scanned in w/o permission and without spell checking or correcting
(except for a couple obvious things).  This is from the July 27 issue:

The Clinton/Gore campaigp has
proclaimed its foursquare support of ma-
jor NASA programs--a step that appears
designed, at least in part, to assuage fears
that a Democratic victory would spell
more trouble for the beleaguered aero-
space industry. 
A new policy statement issued by Ar-
kansas Gov. Bill Clinton's campaign
speaks of restoring "the historical fund-
ing equilibritun" between civil and mili-
tary space programs and increasing
intemational cooperation in space. 
But an adviser to the campaign on
SP0Ce tOld AVIATION WEEK & SPACE
TECHNOLOGY that Clinton would not re
duce U. S. military space spending drasti-
cally, and he would shift any savings to
civil space programs. 
Generally, Clinton's two- page position
paper departs from Bush Administration
policy only by degrees. Moreover, it sp@
ciflcally endorses "the space shuttle's in 
tegral role" and "completion of Space
Station Freedom." 

Rather than criticizing the individual
goals of the Bush Administration on space,
the Clinton campaign is likely to draw at-
tention to failures to achieve them. Per-
haps more sigpificantly, the Democrats
will use space as one way to highlight their
vice presidential candidate-, Sen. Albert
Gore, Jr. (Tenn .), and to call attention to
what many Americans still view as Vice
President Dan Quayle's deficiencies. 
Rarely an issue at the forefront of a
U. S. presidential campaign, space this
year could assume greater importance for
several reasons. First, it is a topic in
which both parties' vice presidential can-
didates have a keen interest. Also, a law
passed since the last presidential election
revived the National Space Councfl and
mandated that the vice president serve as
its head.

Additionally, aerospace is central to the
economy of Califomia, where unemploy-
ment is high (more than 9%) and where
the most Electoral College votes of any
state are to be found (47 votes). 
Perhaps for that reason, the Clinton
space position paper treads carefully in its
criticism of the programs pursued by the
Bush Administration, which has champi-
oned bigger NASA budgets. 
It directly chides President George
Bush and Ronald Reagan only twice for
failing to set space priorities and thus
leaving NASA "saddled with more mis-
sions than it can successfully achieve"
and for tilting toward the military in
space spending. 
The Clinton adviser on s@ace, John Pike
of the Federation of American Scientists,
emphasized that "Clinton is not going to
be making any drastic, disruptive changes.
He will @ntinue with the space program
supported by Democrats in @ngress."
Military space is addressed in Clinton's
position papers on defense. On the Strate-
gic Defense Initiative, Clinton supports
an annual budget of $4 billion or less,
mostly for theater and ground -based anti-
missile systems. 
Clinton's position paper on civil space
said the Democrat would: support efforts
like Mission to Planet Earth but develop
smaller, more focused missions that ad-
dress pressing environmental concems; di-
rect NASA to give high priority to
continued improvement of the American
civil aircraft industry, and develop cut-
ting -edge rocket and satellite technol-
ogies, such as a National Launch System
(NLS). Also, he would aim to establish a
permanent human presence on the Moon
and send humans to Mars; build the space
station, while basing its development on
the twin pnnciples of greater cooperation
and burden sharing with our allies; en-
courage planetary exploration and fully
utilize robotic missions; increase coopera-
tion with Europe, Japan and Russia, and
expand NASA educational programs. 
If much of that sounds familiar, many
Republicans agree. "It's a hoot," one Ad-
ministration official said, characterizing
Clinton's space statement as a carbon- a)py
of Bush/Quayle policies topped off with a
couple paragraphs of general criticism.
PROGRAMS 'COMING UNGLUED' 
But Pike said, "They promulgate these
policies and positions and then nothing
happens." Programs he cited as "coming
unglued" under the Bush Administration
include the National Aer@Space Plane
(NASP), NLS and an SDI single -stage -t@
orbit vehicle. 
Pike touted Gore's involvement on
space issues as a member of the Senate
Armed Services, Intelligence and Com-
merce committees. He said Gore would
be "a chairman of the space council who
gets things done." 
Quayle has plunged into his space
council duties with gusto, and that could
make space an avenue for Republicans to
accent the contributions of their vice pres-
idential candidate, as well. 
However, recent opinion polls show
that a majority of U. S. voten- still believe
Bush would be better off with a different
running mate. Washington was rife with
speculation late last week that Republi-
cans were searching for a graceful way to
ease Quayle out of the No. 2 slot on their
ticket. 
Such a possibility gained credence with
the anticipated retum to the White House
of Secretary of State James A. Baker 3rd.
Baker, Bush's chief strategist in the 1988
campaign, was lukewarm to the selection
of Quayle then and, by more than a few
accounts, regards him as a political rival
now. 
But as talk of replacing Quayle sur-
faced, Bush quickly denied that such a
move is under consideration. 0

Article: 48094
Newsgroups: sci.space
From: [email protected] (Tom Quesinberry)
Subject: Clinton/Gore Space Position
Sender: [email protected]
Organization: Lewis Research Center/NASA
Date:  3 Sep 1992 10:57 EST  
 
I found this on Case Western Reserve University's excellent
cleveland.freenet, and I thought It might interest sci.space readers. 
 
The Republican Position was not posted on freenet, so I have not
included it. If it's posted later I will provide it to sci.space. 
 
				       Quiz 
 
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Tom Quesinberry                 | E-MAIL: [email protected]
  Research Analysis Center/CSD    | PBX:    (216) 433-5130
  Lewis Research Center/NASA      | LIFE:   I would rather see starlight
  Cleveland, Ohio 44135           |             than streetlights.
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  * Some Ignorance Is Indestructible
 
---------------------------------------------------
Article 100 of nptn.campaign92.dems:
Newsgroups: nptn.campaign92.dems
Path: usenet.ins.cwru.edu!nptn.org!tmg
From: [email protected] (Tom Grundner)
Subject: SPACE PROGRAM: Position Paper
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Organization: National Public Telecomputing Network
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 15:25:04 GMT
Approved: [email protected]
 
--------------------------------------------------------
 
CLINTON/GORE ON AMERICA'S SPACE PROGRAM
 
The end of the Cold War offers new opportunities and new challenges
for our civilian space program. In recent years the program has lacked
vision and leadership.  Because the Reagan and Bush administrations
have failed to establish priorities and to match program needs with
available resources, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) has been saddled with more missions than it can successfully
accomplish. 
	
Bill Clinton and Al Gore support a strong U.S. civilian space program
-- for its scientific value, its economic and environmental benefits,
its role in building new partnerships with other countries, and its
inspiration of our nations youth.  A Clinton/Gore Administration space
program will seek to meet the needs of the United States and other
nations while moving toward our long-term space objectives, including
human exploration of the solar system.  A Clinton/Gore space program
will also promote the development of new technologies, create new jobs
for our highly-skilled former defense workers, and increase our
understanding of the planet and its delicate environmental balance. 
	
Move beyond the Cold War
	
*   Restore the historical funding equilibrium
    between NASA and the Defense Departments space
    program. The Reagan and Bush Administrations
    spent more on defense space initiatives than
    on civilian space projects.
	
*    Achieve greater cooperation in space with our
     traditional allies in Europe and Japan, as
     well as with Russia.  Greater U.S.-Russian
     cooperation in space will benefit both
     countries, combining the vast knowledge and
     resources both countries have gathered since
     the launch of Sputnik in 1957.
	
     Improve the American economy through space
	
*    Direct NASA to give high priority to continued
     improvement of the American civil aircraft
     industry, which faces increasing international
     competition.  NASA research can play an
     important role in developing less polluting,
     more fuel efficient, and quieter aircraft.
	
*    Work to improve our space industries
     competitiveness.  Well direct NASA to develop
     cutting-edge rocket and satellite
     technologies.  We will also develop a new,
     cost effective, and reliable launch system to
     maximize scientific and commercial payloads.
	
Link NASA and the environment
	
*    Support NASA efforts -- like Mission to Planet
     Earth -- to improve our understanding of the
     global environment.
 
*    Call on NASA to develop smaller, more focused missions 
     which address pressing environmental concerns.
	
Strengthen NASA and education
	
*    Direct NASA to expand educational programs
     that improve American performance in math and
     science. Space education can help maintain our
     technological edge and improve our competitiveness.
	
*    Direct NASA to expand the outreach of its
     educational efforts beyond its five field
     centers, so that millions more people can
     learn about space.
	
*    Maintain the Space Shuttles integral role in
     our civilian space program.  The Shuttle is
     extremely complex and will always be expensive
     and difficult to operate.  But we must take
     full advantage of its unique capabilities.
	
*    Support completion of Space Station Freedom,
     basing its development on the twin principles
     of greater cooperation and burden sharing with
     our allies. By organizing effectively on this
     project, we can pave the way for future joint
     international ventures, both in space and on Earth.
	
     Encourage planetary exploration through the best space science
	
*    Stress efforts to learn about other planets.
     These improve our understanding of our own
     world and stimulate advances in computers,
     sensors, image processing and communications.
	
*    Fully utilize robotic missions to learn more about the Universe.
	
*    Although we cannot yet commit major resources
     to human planetary exploration, this dream
     should be among the considerations that guide
     our science and engineering.  Because the
     entire world will share the benefits of human
     planetary explorations, the costs for any such
     projects should be borne by other nations as
     well as the United States.
	
The Record
	
*    Senator Al Gore chairs the Senate Subcommittee
     on Science, Technology, and Space, which has
     primary responsibility for NASA and plays a
     key role in efforts to strengthen and
     revitalize America's space program.
 
*    Strongly favors a balanced manned and unmanned
     space program. Supports completion of Space
     Station Freedom and enhancements to the fleet
     of Space Shuttles to ensure safety and reliability.
 
*    Has championed Mission to Planet Earth, an
     initiative designed to gather comprehensive
     information on the Earth's changing
     environment. He strongly supports  efforts to
     channel information on the Earth's environment
     to teachers and school children.
 
*    Strongly supports efforts to strengthen our leadership in aviation.
 
*    Has tried to use space exploration as a bridge
     to international cooperation, not competition.
     Pushed the administration to investigate the
     possibilities for integrating surviving
     elements of the Soviet space program into the
     U.S. program in ways beneficial to America and
     its aerospace workers.
 
*    Following the Challenger disaster, Senator
     Gore uncovered quality assurance deficiencies
     at NASA, gaining a greater commitment to
     quality assurance and accountability at NASA.