I'd much rather ditch the manned space program and invest the money and talent in unmanned space exploration instead. Fill the solar system with probes, orbiters, landers, detectors, and peer far back into the universe on every band of the spectrum. Sadly, the public probably wouldn't support NASA if they didn't have live astronauts to cheer for, though. But we may be the last civilization that is rich enough and capable enough and interested enough to solve the secret of the cosmos, so I hope we press on.
As for the Speaker, he's been too resoundingly false in his personal life to earn my public trust. He's obviously the most influential Republican of the past 20 years, brimming with ideas and snappy lines, but I just don't see leadership qualities in him.
