Rep. Rob Bishop Questions Defense Secretary Gates About Funding Cuts in NASA Programs

WASHINGTON, D.C.--During Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ appearance today before House Armed Services Committee, Congressman Rob Bishop (R-UT), whose Congressional district includes Hill Air Force Base, U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground, Tooele Army Depot and several defense contractors, took the opportunity to ask Secretary Gates the following questions regarding the NASA component of the President’s budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2011, which calls for termination of the Constellation program, including the Ares 5 and Ares 1 rockets produced at the ATK Space Division in Utah.

Q-  Did anyone within the Obama administration, at NASA, or OMB, consult with you or the Department of Defense on the potential impacts of NASA’s termination of the Constellation program and Ares rocket programs

      Secretary Gates responded by stating that he “had indeed not been consulted” by anyone at NASA or anyone in the Administration regarding the implications this would have on national security and preserving a vital segment of the defense industrial base. 

Bishop has consistently pointed out the critical connection that needs to be addressed between NASA and the Department of Defense when it comes to heavy lift capabilities, as both have relied on large, solid-rocket boosters to lift men or missiles into space.  Last year, Secretary Gates terminated the Kinetic Energy Interceptor (KEI) program and the Ground Midcourse Defense (GMD) program within the Missile Defense Agency.  Both those systems used boosters built by ATK Space Division at Promontory, Utah, and now with the proposed cuts in NASA funding, many fear America’s advantage in space, for defense or exploration, will be permanently and dramatically damaged.

“THIS REALLY IS ROCKET SCIENCE and therefore we must make every effort to preserve and continue these cutting-edge scientific advancements for future generations,” Congressman Bishop added.  

During today’s hearing, Congressman Bishop made the additional point that, “If the President’s decision to completely end the Constellation program and the Ares 1 and Ares 5 rockets, is allowed to stand, there will be virtually NO federal program to sustain the Large-Scale Solid Rocket Motor Industrial Base in this country, which will negatively impact our future national defense capabilities.”

Bishop then read a quote from Assistant Secretary of Defense for Acquisition Ashton Carter, who stated in a Defense News interview dated September 7, 2009, that he wanted to keep a close eye on the various sets of skills that undergird the U.S. defense industry’s ability to design and build what the Pentagon orders.  “It’s not about jobs, it’s about certain kinds of jobs; very rare kinds of skills that are not easily replicated in the commercial world and, if allowed to erode, would be difficult to rebuild.” 

Bishop has also stated that, “thousands of people in Utah, especially within the First Congressional District, are losing good-paying high-tech jobs.  Many of the employees at ATK have been with the minuteman program for 35 years or more and have unique experience and capability that will now be lost to our country.”