That's not What He Said: Barack Obama on Cutting NASA to Pay for Spending Programs

Standard Newswire ^ | 08/02/08

[KevinDavis]

ARLINGTON, Va., Aug. 2 /Standard Newswire/ -- Today, in Florida, Barack Obama once again demonstrated that his words really don't matter. When discussing NASA programs, Barack Obama said that "it's still being reported" that he would delay the NASA Constellation Program to pay for his early education program. Unfortunately for Barack Obama, that is what he proposed and has been saying for months:

BARACK OBAMA: "It's Still Being Reported"...

[KevinDavis]

I'm not saying what I'm thinking.. I could get banned..

[KevinDavis]

[rdl6989]

[DBrow]

www.barackobama.com/issues/pdf/PreK-12EducationFactSheet.pdf

It’s gone from this pdf, though Google still references it in cache:

[PDF]
BARACK OBAMA’S PLAN FOR LIFETIME SUCCESS THROUGH EDUCATION
File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - View as HTML
The early education plan will be paid for by delaying the. NASA Constellation Program for five years, using purchase cards and the negotiating power of the ...
www.barackobama.com/issues/pdf/PreK-12EducationFactSheet.pdf - Similar pages - Note this

Does anyone have the original?

[Carling]

Of course it is “still being reported”. It is “being reported” BECAUSE IT IS TRUE.

The guy makes Clinton seem like a trustworthy candidate. Obama considers all of his voters IDIOTS.

[Steely Tom]

Obama considers all of his voters IDIOTS.

Well, he knows his market.

[DBrow]

http://obama.3cdn.net/a8dfc36246b3dcc3cb_iem6bxpgh.pdf

Someone archived the original.

Everybody better dl a copy, soon the word will go out that his current pdf is he one he always had.

IX. A COMMITMENT TO FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Barack Obama’s early education and K-12 plan package costs about $18 billion per year. He will maintain fiscal responsibility and prevent any increase in the deficit by offsetting cuts and revenue sources in other parts of the government. The early education plan will be paid for by delaying the NASA Constellation Program for five years, using purchase cards and the negotiating power of the government to reduce costs of standardized procurement, auctioning surplus federal property, and reducing the erroneous payments identified by the Government Accountability Office, and closing the CEO pay deductibility loophole. The rest of the plan will be funded using a small portion of the savings associated with fighting the war in Iraq.

[DBrow]

The post above has the old, here is the new:

IX. A COMMITMENT TO FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Barack Obama’s early education and K-12 plan package costs about $18 billion per year. you will pay
for this plan without increasing the deficit with a portion of the savings from your plan to cut wasteful
and unnecessary spending. This includes reforming and reducing earmark spending, reforming federal
contracting procedures, using purchase cards and the negotiating power of the government to reduce
costs of standardized procurement, auctioning surplus federal property, and reducing the erroneous
payments identified by the Government Accountability Office, and closing the CEO pay deductibility
loophole.

[PugetSoundSoldier]

That’s not the Barack I knew...

[Red Steel]

You can bet the house that Obama won’t give space exploration a glance.

[NonValueAdded]

Obama told Barbara West from WFTV-9 Orlando point blank on camera that he would hold over the talented workforce. He is also on record for cutting back the programs. It will be interesting to hear what he plans to have those engineers and skilled technicians doing beyond the one extra shuttle flight he's now promising. See http://www.wftv.com/index.html

[Red Steel]

Today, In An Interview With The Orlando Sentinel, Barack Obama Also Criticized The Constellation Program. BARACK OBAMA: "I think the constellation project is a bold vision but we haven't thought through all the steps to get there and what the funding sources are." (Barack Obama, Interview With The Orlando Sentinel, 8/2/08)

You cannot believe anything Obama says at face value. His words do not mean anything.

[ken21]

if you follow what he says,

a lot of things are going to get cut

for social programs.

[fella]

The antics of the Antichrist character in the first “Left Behind” novel comes to mind.

[rawhide]

Well at least Obama spoke the truth, “It’s still being reported”. It is and he did.

[Veggie Todd]

After NASA reitres the shuttles, they’re not going to have anything to do for about 5 years. Why not cut their funding?

[pepsionice]

I’ll make this wise comment. There are X number of jobs in America that require an education of sorts...either community college, trade schools, university-level, etc. Then there are Y number of jobs which require virtually no real education...from Wal-Mart to BP-gas stations. When you look at the X and Y columns...you will notice that they are about even....fifty percent either way.

We are basically producing today...the necessary trained and educated crowd for the X jobs. And by dumb luck, we are producing enough folks for the Y jobs.

So when Obama talks of some major shift in the American education sector and many more individuals going this route...where will the jobs be found? To be very truthful here, we aren’t exactly creating brand new jobs...as much as we are shifting 1,000 jobs in this field over to a 1,000 jobs in this field. I’ve been noticing this for the past ten years. If a guy is not exactly qualified for his new line of work...then he goes out and gets training or certifications. The system in place today...works.

So as I gaze at Obama’s plan...we are basically creating a new wave of educated and trained workers...for jobs that won’t exist at the pay-level that they expect. We’ll have really smart dudes standing there...working as a taxi-driver or a burger flipper...because the government couldn’t invite jobs. So you basically create this negativity that sweeps the nation in ten years...and everyone is asking how to fix the new problem.

And a final bit of analysis here...Germany is one of those countries who is producing far more of the university-level crowd than the job market can absorb. Its been that way for almost thirty years. You end up with a 4-year degree, and working for the insurance companies...simply filing papers and shuffling applications around. I knew of one German that eventually gave up on the system after three years of looking for real pay for a university degree background...and ended up in the US Air Force (his dad was American anyway). There are a couple hundred Germans who pack up each year and go to the US to be high school physics and chemistry teachers...simply because there is no opportunity in Germany.

[iopscusa]

Interesting analysis of the job market and education. Think in terms of opportunity cost as it applies to education. The underlying problem in this country is the monopolistic system of Public Ed + the strangle hold of the ‘Universities’ on determining who is qualified for what career. This system does not reflect reality, it fails at all levels and what we have is a bunch of disgruntled, ill educated citizens feelin that they are oppressed by da man....Barack & Michelle Obama are exhibits # 1!

[Snurple]

Obama should check this out. Negro space program

[DBrow]

I like your analysis!

I think when Obama or any other dem starts talking about education, the students and what happens to them are a tiny part of the equation. Hiring more (union) teachers, counselors, therapists, administrators and so forth is the goal- swell union memberships and toss cash to construction companies who build cheap throwaway buildings that need complete replacement within twenty years.

I looked into a local high school- what does a “curriculum coordinator” do? Nobody could really tell me, but they have four. Plus “grief counselors” who find enough to do to be put on a half-years salary.

If in return for Obama’s “two year service” he’ll give the “volunteers” a PhD complete with black robe, he does not care that they’ll pump subsidized ethanol for a living. It’s the cadre of union teachers and Stalinist professors he’s concerned about.