9/5/2017
President Trump has finally made his choice for NASA’s next chief, but the nominee has been met with opposition from scientists as well as politicians on both sides of the aisle.
The man nominated is Oklahoma congressman Jim Bridenstine, who would become the 13th administrator of the national space agency upon Senate approval. However, Republican senator Marco Rubio and Democrat Bill Nelson, both of Florida, home to NASA’s space center at Cape Canaveral, have criticized the appointment of someone as political and with a perceived lack of experience. Rubio said he and Nelson “share the same concerns” and worry Bridenstine’s “political baggage” would weigh him down in a GOP-led Senate that has grown increasingly resistant to Trump. NASA can’t afford that, Rubio said. “I just think it could be devastating for the space program. Obviously, being from Florida, I’m very sensitive to anything that slows up NASA and its mission,” Rubio said.
Bridenstine holds no scientific or engineering credentials. He also has testified in front of congress that there has been no global warming for the past five years despite the overwhelming scientific evidence to the contrary ( see: Federal Climate Report). Bridenstine has previously criticized the amount of money NASA spends on science research. In 2013, he sponsored a bill seeking to slash funding for research conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
To his credit, Bridenstine was Director of the planetarium in Tulsa. In Trump’s view, that apparently qualifies him to be in charge of a $20 billion dollar budget and to set the course for US space exploration for the foreseeable future.
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