Obama's Plans For Space

Divining precisely what a candidate might do on any specific issue if elected can be tough. Even on major issues, politicians have been known to say one thing during a campaign and do something else in office. Sometimes such switches can be explained by a changed set of facts; other times, well. not so much. If promises on major issues are open to revision, however, those on issues perceived as minor are likely even more fluid. That fluidity may be space advocates' best hope if an Obama presidency comes to be.

Space policy, as usual, has been almost totally ignored during this presidential campaign. Senator Obama, however, makes one proposal quite clear on his website. He would delay the Constellation program for five years and use the money saved to fund a nationwide pre-kindergarten program. In person, however, he has supported the continued development of the Ares rocket and the Orion, the sucessor to the space shuttle. Those two statements are not necessarily consistent. He seems to be saying he would build Ares and Orion-- perhaps largely as a jobs program?-- but delay deciding on whether to go back to the Moon and on to Mars, the Constellation program, for five years.

Whatever else that might do, it wouldn't seem to save much money for the kids. As pointed out in an article currently on The Space Review website, for the next five years Constellation will consist largely of developing and building Ares and Orion. They are the means by which the goals of Constellation will be met.

Politicians, bless their calculating hearts, often try to have it both ways on an issue; they seem not to understand that doing so ultimately leaves them wide open to criticism no matter what they eventually decide. Arguably, the best politicians pursue strategies that allow them to keep the power of decision in their hands for as long as possible. Maybe that's the needle eye Senator Obama is attempting to thread, on space policy and other issues.