Obama Space Speech: New NASA Policy Highlights, Quotes,

Obama Outlines News Space Policy: Kennedy Space Center

President Obama outlined the United States new space policy at the Kennedy Space Center in Flordia on Thursday

Obama began his speech by outlining the historic achievements of the U.S. and NASA's space achivments.

Obama described the urgency of the space race between the Soviet Union and the USA in the 1950s and 1960s. 

President Obama paid tribute to the scientists, innovators who were behind the early space missions, the mission to put a man on the moon, the space shuttle missions.

"1961 was the year of my birth, the year kennedy made his announcement. for me the space program captured what is an essential part to to be an American," Obama said.

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President Obama Arrives in Florida for Space Policy Speech

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Obama NASA Budget Remarks

"We are no longer racing against an adversary... I am 100% committed to the mission of NASA and its future."

We start by increasing NASA's budget by 6 billion dollars over the next five years. This is happening even as we institute a freeze on discresionntionary spending and maintained a freeze in the overall budget."

Obama Space Program Priorities

Obama said money will focus on earth based observations to deal with climate change and other environmental issues

President Obama made a commitment to the Orion program and to work with the private sector to help build and maintain the international space station.

"We will invest 3 billion on a heavy lift rocket ... for deep space exploration, and we will finalize a rocket design no latter than 2015 and we will begin to build it."

We want major breakthrough a transformative agenda for NASA."

"The bottom line is nobody is more committed to manned space flight, to the human exploration of space than i am but we got to it in a smart way but can't be doing the same old things we have been doing by doing it the old way."

"We will be sending astronauts to an asteroid. We will land a human on mars and I expect to be around to see it."

"I understand that some believe that we should return to the surface of the moon but I have to say this bluntly, we have been there before."

Obama Space Program, Jobs

"My plan will add 2,400 jobs more than the previous administration. We will modernize the Kennedy Space Center...this holds the promise to create 10,000 jobs in the next 5 years many of them in Flordia."

"I am proposing a $40 million initiative to promote regional economic development and job creation. It is an effort that will help prepare an already skilled workforce to prepare for the next chapter and beyond."

"Why spend money on NASA at all? For pennies on the dollar the space program has created jobs...for pennies on the dollar the space program has improved lives...