The Hill carried an article today, Ending space trips harms economy, noting Rep. Brady’s comments before the Joint Economic Committee, "Calling the decision “short-sighted,” Brady said at a hearing of the Joint Economic Committee that human space exploration “makes the United States more economically competitive” by driving technological innovation."
Yesterday, the House Appropriations Science Subcommittee decided not to vote on funding the future path forward for NASA, as proposed by the White House in its Fiscal Year 2011 NASA Budget. That Subcommittee, headed by outgoing Chairman Mollohan, who lost his Primary bid for another term, did refuse funding for NASA’s FY 2011 human space flight program, therefore taking a stand as to where the sense of the Subcommittee was in its lack of support for the President’s proposed changes to NASA. However, since it’s unlikely that a budget for 2011 will be passed in time for the new fiscal year that starts on October 1, 2010, such refusal will have little bearing. Instead, it’s expected that Congress will fund NASA with a continuing resolution, which will continue the prohibition against the Administration and NASA from moving away from Constellation into fiscal year 2011.
A budget for NASA is expected after the mid-term elections, although even that could be put on hold until the new Congress has been seated, one that is likely to be less embracing of the Administration’s space proposals than the current Congress.