DECISION ON THE SPACE SHUTTLE 



277 



As you know, I will take action to reduce the authorization to the level pre- 

 sented to us by NASA. I have talked to Jerry Ford in regards to how we can best 

 handle this on the Floor and believe it is imperative that we have a meeting prior 

 to the floor debate. 



Several unexpected developments produced marked changes in the 

 scenario. The rescheduling of the House debate until the later date of 

 April 23 enabled Fulton to make a dramatic appearance on the House 

 floor and manage the bill for the Republican side. Mosher's meeting 

 of the minority members of the committee did not produce a consensus. 

 Finally, Republican Leader Ford, who initially was sympathetic to 

 Mosher's position, eventually wound up as a supporter of the com- 

 mittee position rather than joining the ranks of the Karth-Mosher 

 opposition. 



THE SHUTTLE FIGHT IN THE HOUSE 



On April 23, 1970, Chairman Miller led off the debate on the 

 Space Shuttle and Space Station with these comments: 



The key to the success of this Nation's future space effort lies in the development 

 of a low cost, recoverable, and reusable space transportation system. The reusable 

 Space Shuttle will drastically reduce the cost of putting people and cargo into space 

 In particular, the Shuttle will facilitate construction of a manned orbiting Space 

 Station that will open up new areas of scientific and technological activity in the 

 near neighborhood of earth. 



"Frankly, I have hesitated to grab this tiger by the tail," Mosher 

 told his colleagues in firing the opening gun of the opposition to 

 "Tiger" Teague's efforts to increase the manned space flight authoriza- 

 tion. Mosher argued: 



W e must put relatively greater emphasis on those aspects of the space program 

 (where) the practical returns are the greatest * * * to the human beings right here on 

 earth. 



Mosher contended that at a time when the budget constraints were 

 the most severe, it simply did not make sense to spend nearly $300 

 million above the budget for manned projects while holding the more 

 practical applications of unmanned experiments at the lowest possible 

 level. 



Karth insisted that his purpose was "not to kill the project, but 

 simply to establish a realistic pace for development." He added: 



Before the Space Shutt'e can be a reality, many difficult technological advances 

 must be made in such areas as configuration and aerodynamics, heat protection, 

 guidance and control, and propulsion. * * * As a matter of fact, NASA officials are 

 divided on the fundamental questions of whether the Space Shuttle should be a fully 

 reusable, two-stage vehicle, or simply a recoverable orbital stage launched by an 

 expendable first stage. 



