This just in from Eun Kyung Kim in Washington:
Could the White House be close to naming a NASA administrator? Rumors have flown before, but now they’re being spread by the White House itself.
John Holdren, President Barack Obama's chief science adviser, told U.S. lawmakers today that he has "some reason for optimism that the president will be nominating a permanent administrator for NASA very shortly."
Holdren spoke during a hearing on the administration's proposed research and development budget for next year. He told members of the House Science and Technology Committee that the next NASA chief "will be an outstanding person."
"The president's concern has been to get the right person for that job. The fact that we don't have one until now has not been for lack of effort," he said.
Holdren also reaffirmed Obama's commitment to the manned space program, saying the president "lights up every time space is on the agenda."
The White House last week ordered an independent panel to make a complete review of the agency's manned space program, including plans to return Americans to the moon. The panel will be led by Norman Augustine, the former chief executive of Lockheed Martin who led a similar review of the space program in 1990.
Other panel members will be announced soon, Holdren told lawmakers.
"They’re in vetting now, but it's going to be an impressive group," he said.
Space news and analysis from Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral 
2 comments:
Were waiting
Come on. It's difficult to fill this position with a liberal. It takes someone who wants to take risks. You need someone who can see that you have to pollute to do science (unless you can launch a rocket with solar power....or a windmill, or that really annoying guy in the Mac commerical). Of course you have to figure out how to make a rocket that isn't phallic...don't want to offend anyone. And what about space debris (pollution)??? Of course everyone in the program should get paid the same, wouldn't be fair otherwise (those evil, vile weathly people and their greed). And how can you tax a government program???? I think its taking a while to figure out how to have a director for a space program without actually doing anything in space. How do you turn NASA into a social program?? (OH wait, some people out there do think it is a 'welfare program'....of course they all work in the fast food industry most likely). Bah, why am I going on? This is all tongue in cheek folks, relax. I do worry though what this adminstration will do to the US Space program however.
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