Newt Gingrich trying to sell Trump on a cheap moon plan
Newt Gingrich and an eclectic band of NASA skeptics are trying to sell President Donald Trump on a reality show-style plan to jump-start the return of humans to the moon — at a fraction of the space agency’s estimated price tag.
The proposal, whose other proponents range from an Air Force lieutenant general to the former publicist for pop stars Michael Jackson and Prince, includes a $2 billion sweepstakes pitting billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and other space pioneers against each other to see who can establish and run the first lunar base, according to a summary of the plan shared with POLITICO.
That’s far less taxpayer money than NASA’s anticipated lunar plan, which relies on traditional space contractors, such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin, and is projected to cost $50 billion or more.
Backers of the novel approach have briefed administration officials serving on the National Space Council, several members of the group confirmed, though they declined to provide specifics of the internal conversations.
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/08/19/newt-gingrich-michael-jackson-moon-1466853
I think we should give Newt and Trump each a one way ticket to the moon.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Imagine yourself an astronaut just before launch, perched high atop a complicated rocket ship, consisting of millions of parts
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all provided by the lowest bidder.
It was untrue, by the way. The controls and testing of NASA parts and assemblies far exceeded the strictest military standards of the day. It's one of the reasons why they had so few fatal accidents, and why it cost so much. Safety doesn't come cheap. You can't cut corners on space flight.
