I can certainly understand Larry and Gary's pessimistic outlooks, but there has never been a groundswell clamor in support to initiate a major NASA project so there it is obviously not a prerequisite. The Moon program was initiated by Kennedy. The ISS is a huge project funded despite little public support. PK express keeps getting a second life due solely to a small group of dedicated supporters not a huge public outcry.
We can not expect any huge funding increase for NASA without a strong increase in public support or some renewed tie to national security such as a Chinese space technology challenge. We can, however, accomplish far more with the money NASA is getting than we have so far to date. We could go to Mars on 15 % of NASA's current budget. There is no reason to feel NASA's manned program will be abolished unless they continue to mismanage it as badly as the ISS. I think NASA'a new boss is the man to fix that problem.
Regards,
Mark
Space/Science » in reply to It's more likely to be "None of the above"
It's Not That Bad Guys