It won't.

First off, any deep space manned effort, whether to the Moon, Mars, or asteroids, is going to be international - I know that some "Mars enthusiasts" have illusory costs that they believe in with deep conviction, but however low those numbers are, manned Mars flight is not among the total electorate's highest priorities.

Second, while some "Mars enthusiasts" hate it, the US electorate likes the idea of the US working together with other nations in space.

Third, while most "Mars enthusiasts" are pretty much oblivious to the impact hazard, the total population of this planet is not. The way of handling this hazard is known to be with Moon based facilities. If the US does not lead this effort, then the US simply will not lead it - other nations will.

This is more of the same hysterical nonsense we've had for quite some time now. If you believe what Simberg is peddling, you're being neo-conned.

Finally, if you think that Russian relations with Iran and Syria present problems, take a minute and imagine how bad those situations would be right now if Bush Snr had not engaged Russia.

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