Astronauts Agree with McCaul: Cutting Constellation Jeopardizes National Security

Video of McCaul’s exchange is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omCmysD6ed4.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Obama’s plan to eliminate NASA’s Constellation program would jeopardize America’s national security and send a message to the world that the United States no longer cares about being the dominant force on the world stage. That assessment came from retired astronaut Gene Cernan in response to Congressman McCaul’s concerns about the proposed cuts.

"My concern is that the handoff (to commercial space flight), it’s not an appropriate handoff. They can’t pick up the ball and run with it right now. And my concern is we’re going to have a gap in our superiority in space and we’re going to lose to the Chinese and the Russians," said Rep. McCaul during today’s Science and Technology hearing on the future of NASA human space flight.

"It’s (NASA human space flight) an asset for national security. We can access probably anywhere in lower earth orbit we need to be to do anything we want to do. Repair, recover, replace, satellites, scientific missions like the Hubble. It affects our security because we won’t have the access," said Cernan. "We won’t have the capability to be there when we need to be there. We are hostages, literally hostages, I say, to other nations.

"And it also implies subjectively that we no longer care. Something happens to some other place in the world, ‘don’t worry about it, they don’t care. They’re not gonna come to our rescue. They’re not gonna protect freedom around the world,’" Cernan continued. "If we are viewed by other nations, by other people around the world as being willing to abdicate our leadership in space, what else do they believe we are willing to dismantle without reason?"

"If for the next decade we have no access to space we will be viewed by people around the world as being a ‘has been’," added retired Astronaut Neil Armstrong.

Two of the three astronauts at today’s hearing testified they do not believe the president’s plan to cut Constellation in lieu of commercial space travel is executable. The third said it is highly unlikely. "That’s pretty powerful," said Rep. McCaul.