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Introduction
Like it or not, space and politics are linked at the hip. We are at tipping point in humanity and our ability to travel among the stars. With the Space Shuttle program ending in 2010 and the Constellation program not starting until 2015, this is the point in time where we can either make a run for it or let another 30+ years go by without leaving low earth orbit (LEO).

It is a bit scary how many Americans don’t seem to care about or at least understand space and space travel. With over 8% of all worldwide inventions somehow linked to NASA, the idea of giving up and cutting back this organizations funds is appalling to me. Do we really want to lose the brain trust that NASA has gathered over the years to other space programs around the world? Do we want to allow innovation and imagination to seep out and get scattered across the globe? China is pushing their space program forward, Russia is building a new shuttle based system and the US was leading the pack with a plan to go back to the Moon, on to Mars and beyond. It seems that most Americans don’t care, don’t want to care or don’t understand how pivotal this mission truly is.

A great reason for space travel, outside of the doom and gloom scenario of the planet no longer able to host us and the human race going extinct, we are by our very nature a curious species. We look to explore, innovate and push ourselves further and further forward. We take pride in our ability to grow, become more than we were yesterday. Imagine a world without airplanes, electricity or even America itself. These are just a few things that humans have done to push forward, innovate and become more than we were before. So why have most Americans stopped caring about NASA and space travel? Is it time for another country to take the lead and show America how it is done?

There are three options as I see it:
1 - We can give NASA the funding needed to accomplish its missions. This would mean a pretty big increase in the NASA budget as well as an accelerated timeline to push the Constellation project forward faster. It took us 9 years to go from nothing to landing on the moon, why is it going to take longer to accomplish the very same task, a task we have already done? With additional funds we should be able to speed up this program to get us on the moon faster which means on to Mars faster too.

2 - We can leave the NASA program as it is. Right now NASA is basically limping along and in my opinion this is the worst option. There isn’t enough money to truly innovate and create inspiring missions yet it is large enough to keep the private sector at bay. Leaving NASA as it is would continue to put humanities exploration in to space on the back burner, just as it has been since after the Apollo program. The Space Shuttle is nice, but it is nothing close to what was originally planned.

3 - We can drastically cut funding to NASA and turn it in to an oversight committee. Think FAA but for space travel. This would push other countries and the private sector to start innovating in wake of the loss of NASA. We will lose the current brain trust we have, but if we go this route then we basically have admitted defeat and have no intention of doing anything great in space anyhow.

Don’t take me for a NASA supporter. I have some pretty harsh words to say about the Constellation program as well as the inspiration, or lack thereof coming out of NASA. I don’t understand why it would take so long to get a mission like this running, and there are many areas that I just shake my head at. But this isn’t about NASA’s faults (which every origination has, big or small), this is about giving NASA the tools they need to succeed, not just limp along. This is about the US remaining the world leaders in space travel. Are we really willing to give that up? Are we ready to lay down and admit defeat?

The next President of the United States will have a lasting impact on how the US Space Program moves forward. Will they give NASA the funds badly needed to move out out of LEO, will they maintain the status quo, or will they cut funds and effectively kill the brain trust currently at NASA and allow other countries to gobble them up? Below you will see the current candidates and their publicly released policies on space travel. This is specific to space travel and not their other policies. Since we’re not a non-profit organization we’re able to talk about politics openly with opinions and I encourage you to do the same in the comments.

Not to sound cheesy here, but the very future of the human race is at stake. The issue of space travel is critically important and while I don’t have all the answers I hope to build a foundation where people can come to help develop some answers. Agree with me disagree with me, keep it professional and lets start a dialog! And remember, I’m learning along with all of you as well. My opinions are my own, do not represent that of any of our sponsors or anyone else associated with SpaceVidcast, and can change if I find new data to reach a different conclusion.

John McCain (R)
The official John McCain web site has this to say about the American Space Program, "John McCain is a strong supporter of NASA and the space program. He is proud to have sponsored legislation authorizing funding consistent with the President’s vision for the space program, which includes a return of astronauts to the Moon in preparation for a manned mission to Mars. He believes support for a continued US presence in space is of major importance to America’s future innovation and security. He has also been a staunch advocate for ensuring that NASA funding is accompanied by proper management and oversight to ensure that the taxpayers receive the maximum return on their investment. John McCain believes curiosity and a drive to explore have always been quintessential American traits. This has been most evident in the space program, for which he will continue his strong support."

Frankly this isn’t enough information to get a good idea on what he is planning at all. It is merely a PR piece to make everyone feel warm and fuzzy. Additional questions of John McCain need to be asked and a real plan needs to be addressed.

Hillary Clinton (D)
Hillary’s web site starts out with, "On the 50th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik, Hillary Clinton today vowed to end the Bush Administration’s war on science and announced her agenda to promote scientific discovery in research, medicine and space exploration." You can read the full article on her website, but there are basically three bullet points worth noting:

1. Pursuing an ambitious 21st century Space Exploration Program, by implementing a balanced strategy of robust human spaceflight, expanded robotic spaceflight, and enhanced space science activities.
2. Developing a comprehensive space-based Earth Sciences agenda, including full funding for NASA’s Earth Sciences program and a space-based Climate Change Initiative that will help us secure the scientific knowledge we need to combat global warming.
3. Promoting American leadership in aeronautics by reversing funding cuts to NASA’s and FAA’s aeronautics R&D budget.

On the surface this all seems nice, but lets look in to that "a balanced strategy of robust human spaceflight, expanded robotic spaceflight, and enhanced space science activities" bit a little further. NASA is criticized for being overly heavy on human spaceflight which means that Hilary is proposing to either add a lot of robotic space flight or cut down on the human space flight. I think this is a good article with the money quote being, "Travel to the Moon or Mars ‘excites people,’ she said, ‘but I am more focused on nearer-term goals I think are achievable.’"

OUCH! Hilary seems to talk the talk, but not walk the walk.

Barack Obama (D)
I’ll be frank, I was excited about Obama for a while. I agree with a lot of his stances, but one area I am strongly against is his pitting Education against Space Travel. Obama’s education platform document ends with the following paragraph, "IX. A COMMITMENT TO FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Barack Obama’s early education and K-12 plan package costs about $18 billion per year. He will maintain fiscal responsibility and prevent any increase in the deficit by offsetting cuts and revenue sources in other parts of the government. The early education plan will be paid for by delaying the NASA Constellation Program for five years, using purchase cards and the negotiating power of the government to reduce costs of standardized procurement, auctioning surplus federal property, and reducing the erroneous payments identified by the Government Accountability Office, and closing the CEO pay deductibility loophole. The rest of the plan will be funded using a small portion of the savings associated with fighting the war in Iraq."

During a Town Hall Meeting in Wyoming Greg Zsidisin asked Obama, "Why are you specifically pitting the space program against education, and where’s the vision in shutting down the [human] space program?" to which Obama replied, "I grew up on Star Trek. I believe in the final frontier. NASA has lost focus and is no longer associated with inspiration. I don’t think our kids are watching the space shuttle launches. It used to be a remarkable thing. It doesn’t even pass for news anymore.”

This has sparked a large amount of debate inside of space flight circles. Allow me to throw out a few different views here:

"It would be good to have a President who understood the difference in science payoff between manned and unmanned spaceflight. The former is exciting and inspirational, the latter gets enormously greater results per dollar." http://cosmicvariance.com/2008/03/02/obama-talks-sense-about-nasa/

And check out the comments on this post, including, "I wish he’d be bolder and just say he’d shut down manned space." - http://www.spacepolitics.com/2008/03/07/obama-nasa-no-longer-associated-with-inspiration/

And my favorite response is a three part article by Greg Zsidisin himself:
Part 1 - http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1100/1
Part 2 - http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1105/1
Part 3 - http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1109/1

What should you do?
You should educate yourself on space travel. Agree with it or disagree with it this is an issue worth billions of taxpayers dollars. If you agree with the SpaceVidcast stance that space travel is critical to humanity, then I suggest you write your congressman/congresswoman, write to the different campaigns, make your voice heard. If the candidates don’t know that the American people care, then they will just pass it up. Make sure they know what you think. Make your voice heard. Many may not believe it, but sometimes it just takes one voice to say the right words to move the world.