Trump Scrubs KSC Visit
Keith’s update: According to CNN, Trump has cancelled plans to visit KSC. So much for the photo op of his jet landing at KSC shuttle landing facility. Apparently they could not find a rally location offsite in a nearby location that would meet the expected audience numbers. I’ve also heard that there was a NASA concern that the campaign would try and do a tour where giant NASA logos would appear in campaign photos.
Donald Trump adds Sanford, St. Augustine to Florida swing, FloridaPolitics.com
“In addition, he’s expected to tour Kennedy Space Center and meet with the Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast. That activity originally was scheduled for Monday but the Space Coast EDC reported it has been postponed to Tuesday. No details are yet available.”
Donald Trump to meet with Florida space officials Monday, Orlando Sentinel
“Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has accepted an invitation to tour Kennedy Space Center and other locations on the Space Coast before sitting in on a roundtable of space industry leaders on Monday, Oct. 24. … So far, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has not accepted invitations to tour the region. Lynda Weatherman, president and CEO of the economic development commission of Florida’s Space Coast, said she hopes Trump’s visit encourages Clinton to follow suit.”
Maybe he’ll talk about fixing the potholes at KSC…
Make Mars Great Again!
When is Hillary going yo visit GRC? Last I looked she wasn’t leading in Ohio, Once again, Ohio politicians/GRC management fail to use the importance of Ohio in presidential elections.
Government installations have no business being used as props for politicians.
Perhaps, but let’s be fair. An elected official, running for reelection, would have no problem finding a “work-related” reason to visit a government installation and use as a prop. I don’t necessarily like that. But since it happens, why limit it to incumbents and give them another advantage?
It’s bad form and inappropriate all around. In the meantime, I’m glad the Deplorable Trump will not be going to KSC anyway.
I guess I’m in a cynical mood, but “bad form and inappropriate” stopped being an issue in American politics around the time Huey Long was elected as the governor of Louisiana, if not earlier. These days, I’m just glad they don’t shoot at each other over elections.
I feel compelled to parse that comment a bit: lots of the criticism towards Mr. Trump could be summarized as ‘not appropriate’, couldn’t it? There IS a standard of behavior we expect – it’s morphing through time, of course, but still.
Huey P. Long -governor and demagogue – took on Standard Oil, enriching Louisiana by enacting a ‘depletion tax’. Every issue has more than one side, I guess.
I was thinking of the idea that, to win an election, it’s OK to say or do whatever it takes. While Mr. Trump apparently feels that way, he is neither the first or only person to do so. Now that I think of it, pointing out Mr. Long wasn’t accurate; the “if not earlier” was. In American politics, this attitude can be seen in the Federalist campaign in 1800, and in other countries, I must have been forgetting everything I know about electioneering in the Roman Republic.
Mr. Trump is appearing today at the Collier County Fairgrounds today. It’s something I wouldn’t miss. He’s not my candidate, but still. Could be a good show.
It’s awfully far from an airport big enough for his plane, though. I wonder if he rents a chopper.
Let us know if it’s a helicopter. My bet would be one of those absurd stretch Hummers.
I couldn’t get a ticket. stood in line, no joy. Was told he used a helicopter.
Government installations are perfect ‘props’, and for a good reason: the candidate will be in charge of the facility.
JSC was CREATED as a prop.
It has been going on for a long time. Remember Kerry’s bunny suit? Or Bush the Younger using an aircraft carrier for his “Mission Accomplished” political stunt?
Maybe the politicians should use their pollsters instead to ask the people of Ohio two questions?
Can you name a current astronaut?
Do you support a space program with no technology development / spinoffs?
I think the answer to both of those questions would be a resounding NO.
Remind me to take Monday off.
Looong runway for that ego.
He can talk about the SLS. It’s going to be HHUUUUUUUUGGGGEEE!!!
Bigly
I wonder who the industry reps are. I suppose no civil servants anywhere of course.
If Florida were not a swing state, would any presidential candidate visit KSC? We see none visit JSC. Some cities and towns have been impacted from loss of Shuttle, I heard others like Melbourne vectored their business base away from space and into other industries so they are more resilient. Speaking of that runway, very long specifically made for Shuttle, does entire 15,000 ft still need maintenance?
In the Florida weather the maintenance costs are not great, however it is now leased to Space Florida so NASA no longer pays maintenance but has to pay to use it.
If an area is locked up it gets less attention from both candidates. In matters of space districts, local politics around centers, if a candidate trying to swing an area has good reason to believe that even hurling money isn’t going to turn the area, why bother?
The real question is what would a candidate think they get from a certain move in matters of space that they otherwise did not have, and of those moves which is more certain.
Among other things, they use the Shuttle Landing Facility to test race cars and for land speed record attempts. What a horrible way to utilize a space facility.
There must be some NASA civil servants breathing a sigh of relief. I recall the Kerry incident, the brushes up against the Hatch act. Must have been civies warning about possible issues here all over, on the side of super caution given history and more recent goings ons.
But aren’t the governmental facilities owned by all of us, collectively? And as others have pointed out the incumbent uses any facilities he thinks will help. Why can’t a challenger do the same?