"O'Keefe couldn't afford the $40 million allocated by a unanimous vote of the committee for the X-38? Who does the bean-man think he's fooling? "

Maybe he's sending a message that NASA can't afford to support senatorial pork anymore.

If the USA wants to be in space, it has to obey the laws of physics and economics, not politics.

X-38 doesn't make sense. 2 Soyouz' does*.

* using standard 21st century capitalist economics with emphasis on "this quarter bottom line" - most company CEO's are selling their entire future for a tiny improvement in the next quarter.

O'Keefe strikes me as a man calling a few bluffs. he's been put there to do a financial job, and he will do it, no matter what political toes he steps on.

The outcome will either be a realisation that space is too political to be subject to simplistic economics, or that economics must rule, and stuff the porking politicians. Either outcome would be an improvement on the current unworkable pretence.