The country needs a cabinet-level Department of Space. All of these imply that some silver bullet can set everything right. Not so, says Kay. He seeks the roots of the problem in the political environment. His analysis portrays NASA as a victim of forces beyond its control.
Presidents voice a rhetoric of expectation but fail to lead.
Other executive agencies support NASA only when it suits them. The Air Force, for instance, endorsed the space shuttle only after NASA redesigned it to carry spy satellites. Congress puts NASA officials through a gauntlet of committee hearings that test patience and endurance but otherwise achieve little in the way of coherent, long-term policy formulation. The aerospace industry, a powerful force in shaping national policy, cares more about an expensive program than a productive one. The list goes on.