Keith’s note: according to a press release from the Select Committee on China: “The committee’s report, Research Security for America’s Future in Space: NASA’s Enforcement of the Wolf Amendment, reviewed NASA-supported research collaborations involving entities affiliated with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), including several institutions connected to China’s defense industrial base. The report identifies hundreds of NASA-supported or funded publications that potentially violate the Wolf Amendment due to bilateral research collaborations between American and Chinese coauthors and institutions. These findings raise significant concerns regarding the adequacy of historical post-award monitoring, enforcement, institutional disclosure practices, and the agency’s ability to identify potentially prohibited collaborations occurring under NASA-funded research awards.”

Keith’s Note: NASA press release: The United States Senate today voted to confirm Matthew Anderson, Col, USAF, Ret., as the Deputy Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Anderson was nominated by President Donald J. Trump and will serve as the 16th Deputy Administrator of the agency.

Keith’s note: America and Canada were inspired a proud of Artemis II. NASA said that -a lot. And its true. The crew visited Congress but NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens only reposts Republican social media on her official account @NASASpox. No Dems. No mention of Canada. Why? C’mon. We’re ALL proud. Oh yes … after the midterm elections NASA may need those Democrats to help out on things. Just sayin’

Keith’s note: The recent firing of the entire National Science Board by the White House is not going down well in Congress. While the immediate impact is on NSF this will result in collateral damage at NASA, NOAA, NIH, NIST, and all other government science activities – just as the Administration says that America needs to dial up its leadership in Science. Both House and Senate members have issued simultaneous rejections of this unwarranted action.

• According to a press release and letter from House Science Committee Democtrats: “House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) led thirty-one Democratic Members in sending a letter to President Donald Trump regarding his legally dubious April 24, 2026, termination of all 22 Members of the National Science Board (NSB). The NSB advises Congress and the President on the activities of the National Science Foundation (NSF), and it has served this function since the creation of NSF in 1950. In their letter, the Members call into question the legal basis of this decision and demand that President Trump reinstate the Board immediately.”
• According to a letter sent by Senate Democrats: “Terminated NSB members have stated that OMB instructed NSF leadership not to share details of the agency’s budget plans with the full board, despite the NSB’s statutorily mandated role in approving NSF’s spending.16 With the NSB now entirely vacated, there is no independent check on OMB’s influence, if not control, over NSF grant-making, strategic direction, and spending priorities. As one former board member warned, NSF could “essentially become a pass-through for implementing things in the domain of sciences and technology that the administration just wants to do.”

Keith’s note: Prior to the arrival of NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman a substantial part of NASA management direction was done verbally and not documented. Often times it was in direct opposition to stated congressional direction. Congress was not amused – especially Democrats. That has changed under Jared Isaacman to a rather substantial extent. While the FY 2027 Presidential Budget Request for NASA is a near mirror image of the FY 2026 PBR, Congress seems to have a much better interaction with Isaacman – and NASA management. But they are still not happy with science and education cuts. And there is still the matter of NASA delivering its FY 2026 operating plan to Congress. If Democrats gain majority in the House (and maybe the Senate) those concerns will be turbocharged. Meanwhile, the White House is leery of what a potential congressional flip in one or both chambers might mean. According to the Washington Post “The roughly 30-minute briefings have included a PowerPoint presentation about how congressional oversight works and best practices for handling it, according to the two people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. Staff from the counsel’s office have encouraged political appointees to be careful about what they put in writing and provided guidance for how to respond to congressional inquiries in a timely manner, the people said.” NASA may be somewhat ahead already when it comes to thinking across the aisle. That said … stay tuned.

Keith’s note: Last Friday afternoon @ASGSRSpace (American Society for Gravitational and Space Research) tweeted that they “hosted an AVATAR Lunch & Learn with congressional staffers Thursday, connecting space biomedical research with policy. Speakers: Lisa Carnell (NASA),Shelby Giza (Space Tango), Mamta Nagaraja (Voyoma/ASGSR) #ASGSR #AVATARBPS #SpacePolicy #ArtemisII @NASA @NASAArtemis”. Science folks justifiably worry about FY 2027 NASA science cuts. It’s good that a few of them decided to try and update Congress on what is going on. That said, no one in the media knew in advance. NASA sent a staffer – but said nothing about their participation. These science advocates hold small events, alert no one, post nothing afterward – except selfies. As a result, a vast pool of external advocates outside the DC space bubble learn nothing. If the NASA science budget is restored it’s probably going to happen in spite of these stealthy efforts. Just sayin’ – but keep tryin’

Keith’s note: The House Appropriations Committee (chaired by Republicans) has released its FY2027 Commerce-Justice-Science bill which includes NASA, NSF, and NOAA [Summary] [Full Text] The bill asks for $24.4 billion for NASA. This amount is the almost exactly the same that NASA received in the enacted FY 2026 budget. Last year OMB submitted a FY 2026 Presidential Budget Request asking for $18.8 billion. That large gut was eventually reversed and increased to $24.4 billion – an amount mostly matching the amount NASA got for FY 2025. Apparently, not getting last year’s congressional message, OMB has asked for $18.8 billion for NASA in FY 2027. If last year was a feature – not a bug – then that OMB mark has a significant chance of being bumped upwards – again – perhaps to something close to the $24.4 billion. There is a mark-up hearing on this budget Thursday at 8:00 am EDT so we’ll see what’s likely to happen. Update: the committee approved its FY 2027 bill by a vote of 8 to 6. Republicans who were voting said ‘yes’ and all of Democrats voted against it.

Keith’s note: The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS), will host a hearing with Jared Isaacman on the President’s fiscal year 2027 budget request for NASA on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, at 10:00 am EDT in Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 138. Livestream HERE.

Keith’s note: NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies

• Isaacman Statement
• Webcast

Keith’s note: the other day the Planetary Society just had their SaveNASAScience thing on Capitol Hill. Lotsof space advocates and actual space scientists walked the halls of Congress. Good on ya. More people should do this and not just on one certain day. Alas, neither the Planetary Society nor any of its participating organizations sent out media advisories. Tick tock. Yesterday there was a hearing with Jared Isaacman about NASA’s 2027 Presidential Budget Request. Among the most significant aspects of the budget is the second attempt in as many years by OMB and the White House to gut NASA science – of all kinds. Yet no mention was made – or coverage offered – by the Planetary Society or these groups (that I can find – please correct me on this). One day sugar-high events like the SaveNASAScience thing fade fast. 24 hours and *poof*. Yet it is important for organizations like The Planetary Society and individuals to be interacting with the day-to-day efforts, down in the weeds, where the rubber hits the road and actual budgets are crunched by those who would halt their damaging effects. This is a marathon, not a one day sprint for photo ops.

Keith’s note: there was a Review of the President’s Budget Request for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for Fiscal Year 2027 today. There was one witness: NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. I live tweeted the hearing at @NASAWatch. Hearing charter and video below. Opening statements:

• Jared Isaacman
• Brian Babin
• Zoe Lofgren

Keith’s note: Former NASA astronauts Garrett Reisman and Steve Lindsay from
Astronauts for America were on CNN this evening talking about growing partisanship, protecting constitutional democracy, and the need for a strong space program. According to Reisman: “We want America to lead in scientific endeavors and if you don’t fund that – its not going to happen”. Former NASA administrator/astronaut Charles Bolden and astronaut Wendy Lawrence were on the NBC TODAY show earlier in the day. Info: astronautsforamerica.org

Washington, D.C. – Today, a group of 103 former NASA Astronauts launched Astronauts For America, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to upholding constitutional values; restoring public trust in American democracy; and supporting leaders who respect science, use data to make decisions, and work across political differences for the good of the American people. As we approach America’s 250th anniversary, the former NASA Astronauts are reaffirming the oath they each took to support and defend the U.S. Constitution. More below

Keith’s note: a letter was been sent by 4 Senators on 13 April 2026 letter to the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies of the Senate Committee on Appropriations regarding NASA’s FY 2027 Science budget – specifically the Mars Sample Return mission. Full letter below

Keith’s note: House Science, Space, and Technology Committee will be holding a hearing on Wednesday, 22 April: “A Review of the President’s Budget Request for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for Fiscal Year 2027” Update: according to Marcia Smith at @SpcPlcyOnline “House Appropriations CJS subcommittee will hold a hearing on NASA’s FY2027 budget request next Monday, Apr 27, 3:30 pm ET. The subcommittee will mark up the CJS bill on Thursday, Apr 30, at 8:00 am ET. Full cmte CJS markup is scheduled for May 13 at 11:00 am ET.” More below.

Keith’s Update: Hey NASA Goddard GESTA IFPTE Local 29 – You have said nothing about this. You should be beating the bushes to find supportive input for this. If you won’t stand up for yourselves then why expect others to do so? You have 4 days left to provide/promote input. Keith’s earlier note: According to the National Academies: “The National Academies are seeking suggestions for experts to participate in a new Congressionally mandated consensus study tasked with conducting a high-level assessment of current technical and scientific capabilities housed at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), what capabilities are positioned to ensure long-term success of the NASA mission—including for future cutting-edge scientific discovery and crewed space exploration—and what facilities are needed to house and operate those capabilities.” More below

Keith’s Note: Last week we all had a moment to savor just how extraordinary the Artemis II mission was – not only for its technological prowess- but more importantly the sense of pride, wonder, and inspiration it generated here and across the world. So, how do we reward the team who did this? We – gut their budget – for the second year in a row -of course. Congratulations! A preview from the LA Times: A renewed threat to JPL as the Trump administration tries again to cut NASA.

Keith’s note: According to a release “Science Committee Democratic Staff Report Reveals Details on NASA’s Illegal Implementation of Trump’s FY2026 Budget Request Without Congressional Approval” – “A Presidential budget request means nothing until Congress acts on it,” said Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren. “And in 2025, NASA implemented Trump’s budget proposal illegally, without any approval from Congress. The agency violated the basic separation-of-powers framework set forth in the Constitution. NASA’s actions derailed critical projects, demoralized its employees, and broke its trust with the scientific community and the private sector. NASA repeatedly denied what it was doing, but the facts prove otherwise. This staff report provides an overview of the evidence my team has gathered and highlights the damage NASA inflicted upon itself by yielding to pressure from OMB instead of following the law.” More below

Keith’s note: The President was on Fox the other day and was talking about NASA and said this in response to the ArtemisII mission … “I’m the one that started that program. NASA was closed. It was totally closed. There was grass growing on the runways. I went there. I was there in Florida. Got pictures of all of their facilities. They had grass growing out of their cracked asphalt in Florida and elsewhere. And you know I said this is terrible – let’s start it up. So we started it up and it gave great pride – everybody watched that the other day.” Bullshit. He did not start NASA’s program to return to the Moon. NASA was not “closed”. And for the past two fiscal years in a row he has put forth a budget request that would cripple large parts of NASA. But NASA’s Press Secretary Bethany Stevens @NASASpox and AA for Communications Will Boyington @Will_Bo simply amplified it on their Twitter accounts – with no comments i.e. tacit approval. And @NASAAdmin approved of it as well. There is a hearing on NASA’s FY 2027 budget next week which might be interesting. Or not.