Varying Views on NASA's Budget

Bush signs act allowing NASA more shuttle time, money, Houston Chronicle

“The bill also solidifies funding for nine shuttle missions to the space station and it extends the agency’s involvement in the space station until 2020. The measure also urges an additional shuttle mission to launch the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a $1.6 billion-observatory that would be attached to the outside of the station.”

NASA’s Party Over, CBS

“NASA’s long-standing practice of honoring retirees and contractors with lavish award ceremonies costing millions of dollars a year may be over. President Bush signed the NASA Reauthorization Act providing funding for the agency as well as tough new restrictions on conference spending.”

Watchdogs CCAGW and NTU to Presidential Candidates: You Want Government Waste? We Got It…, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste and the National Taxpayers Union

“CCAGW’s research arm, Citizens Against Government Waste, issues “Prime Cuts,” which contains “701 spending cut recommendations across the entire federal budget totaling nearly $2 trillion over five years. … It also makes tough calls, like canceling the NASA Mars Initiative for a savings of $11.5 billion over five years.”