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Mayor urges compromise on Constellation
03/21/10By Mary Alys Cherry, Bay Area Citizen
Back from meeting with NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden, Houston Mayor Annise Parker is hopeful President Obama will reconsider terminating the Constellation program — or come up with a compromise plan for the space agency.
“While I am pleased we have begun the discussion, many questions remain unanswered and I continue to have serious concerns about the future of human space flight and the role the Johnson Space Center will play under the administration's proposed NASA budget."
During last week’s meeting with Bolden, she asked him to consider a “Plan B” to keep Constellation going or come up with a “soft landing” for Johnson Space Center so so many jobs are not lost all at once after the shuttle is retired.
The trip followed a personal letter of Obama urging him to cease current efforts to terminate the Constellation program.
“Human space flight is vital to the Houston economy,” she told the president. “The Constellation program would help our Johnson Space Center workforce transition effectively as the shuttle is retired from active service.”
Without it, she explained that the area will lose anywhere from 4,000 to 7,000 high-tech jobs. “The economic impact on Houston and the region would be devastating, on the order of $560 million.”
She also invited the president to visit Johnson Space Center and see all the important work they do there. There is no greater vision than going back to space,” she told reporters on arrival back in Houston.
After meeting with Bolden, the mayor and a bipartisan group of congressional representatives held a news conference to support the Constellation program. Participants included Reps. Gene Green (D), Pete Olson (R), Sheila Jackson Lee (D), Kevin Brady (R), John Culberson (R), Al Green (D), Michael McCaul (R), and Ted Poe (R). Here are some of their comments:
Rep. Gene Green: “Given our current economic downturn, we cannot take the possibility of an additional 20,000 to 30,000 national job losses lightly. Our government has already invested literally years and billions of dollars into this program. We should build upon these investments and not abandon them.”
Rep. Pete Olson: “Constellation was overwhelmingly approved by both Republican and Democratic controlled Congresses precisely because human space flight is such an intrinsic component of American exceptionalism. It is also critical to our ability to remain competitive globally in the fields of science and technology. I am proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with my Houston colleagues to make the case for the national value and benefits of the investment in Constellation.”
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee: “NASA’s Constellation Program is vital to maintaining America’s leadership role in human space exploration, creating jobs, and boosting the economy. Continuation of NASA’s Constellation Program is crucial to improving national security, climate, and research in science and medicine. That is why I introduced legislation March 9 to ensure that all Constellation space flight activities continue through 2016 and that we designate NASA as a national security interest and asset.”
Rep. Kevin Brady: “NASA technologies like the Constellation Program are fundamental to the Greater Houston area not just for jobs but also for technology development. If this program is scrapped we will see an immediate job loss at a time when the Houston area needs to be creating jobs, not killing them.”
Rep. John Culberson: “The Constellation Program is the best program to keep our country at the forefront of space exploration. I am strongly opposed to the president’s proposal because yielding the high ground in space will make America less competitive and put our space program at risk.”
Rep. Al Green: “The Constellation Program is a shovel ready jobs program. This program’s cancellation would not only have a negative effect on Houston’s economy, but also on the national economy. In Houston, by some estimates, 10,000 direct and indirect jobs could be lost, in addition to 20,000 to 30,000 jobs nationwide. We need to invest in these jobs as our nation continues to fight for the stability of its job market.”
Rep. Michael McCaul: “Every president since Washington has had a wish list, but in the United States, it's the Congress that writes the budget. We have growing bipartisan support and we intend to make sure human space flight and exploration remains the core mission of America's space program."
Rep. Ted Poe: “Giving up on our space program will not only devastate our local economy and the engineering and aerospace industries, but will be a crippling blow to our national psyche. ‘Houston’ was the first word heard on the moon, not ‘Moscow,’ not ‘Beijing.’ NASA is America’s legacy – Houston’s legacy.”
“While I am pleased we have begun the discussion, many questions remain unanswered and I continue to have serious concerns about the future of human space flight and the role the Johnson Space Center will play under the administration's proposed NASA budget."
During last week’s meeting with Bolden, she asked him to consider a “Plan B” to keep Constellation going or come up with a “soft landing” for Johnson Space Center so so many jobs are not lost all at once after the shuttle is retired.
The trip followed a personal letter of Obama urging him to cease current efforts to terminate the Constellation program.
“Human space flight is vital to the Houston economy,” she told the president. “The Constellation program would help our Johnson Space Center workforce transition effectively as the shuttle is retired from active service.”
Without it, she explained that the area will lose anywhere from 4,000 to 7,000 high-tech jobs. “The economic impact on Houston and the region would be devastating, on the order of $560 million.”
She also invited the president to visit Johnson Space Center and see all the important work they do there. There is no greater vision than going back to space,” she told reporters on arrival back in Houston.
After meeting with Bolden, the mayor and a bipartisan group of congressional representatives held a news conference to support the Constellation program. Participants included Reps. Gene Green (D), Pete Olson (R), Sheila Jackson Lee (D), Kevin Brady (R), John Culberson (R), Al Green (D), Michael McCaul (R), and Ted Poe (R). Here are some of their comments:
Rep. Gene Green: “Given our current economic downturn, we cannot take the possibility of an additional 20,000 to 30,000 national job losses lightly. Our government has already invested literally years and billions of dollars into this program. We should build upon these investments and not abandon them.”
Rep. Pete Olson: “Constellation was overwhelmingly approved by both Republican and Democratic controlled Congresses precisely because human space flight is such an intrinsic component of American exceptionalism. It is also critical to our ability to remain competitive globally in the fields of science and technology. I am proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with my Houston colleagues to make the case for the national value and benefits of the investment in Constellation.”
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee: “NASA’s Constellation Program is vital to maintaining America’s leadership role in human space exploration, creating jobs, and boosting the economy. Continuation of NASA’s Constellation Program is crucial to improving national security, climate, and research in science and medicine. That is why I introduced legislation March 9 to ensure that all Constellation space flight activities continue through 2016 and that we designate NASA as a national security interest and asset.”
Rep. Kevin Brady: “NASA technologies like the Constellation Program are fundamental to the Greater Houston area not just for jobs but also for technology development. If this program is scrapped we will see an immediate job loss at a time when the Houston area needs to be creating jobs, not killing them.”
Rep. John Culberson: “The Constellation Program is the best program to keep our country at the forefront of space exploration. I am strongly opposed to the president’s proposal because yielding the high ground in space will make America less competitive and put our space program at risk.”
Rep. Al Green: “The Constellation Program is a shovel ready jobs program. This program’s cancellation would not only have a negative effect on Houston’s economy, but also on the national economy. In Houston, by some estimates, 10,000 direct and indirect jobs could be lost, in addition to 20,000 to 30,000 jobs nationwide. We need to invest in these jobs as our nation continues to fight for the stability of its job market.”
Rep. Michael McCaul: “Every president since Washington has had a wish list, but in the United States, it's the Congress that writes the budget. We have growing bipartisan support and we intend to make sure human space flight and exploration remains the core mission of America's space program."
Rep. Ted Poe: “Giving up on our space program will not only devastate our local economy and the engineering and aerospace industries, but will be a crippling blow to our national psyche. ‘Houston’ was the first word heard on the moon, not ‘Moscow,’ not ‘Beijing.’ NASA is America’s legacy – Houston’s legacy.”
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