Bolden's China Trip: Its His Idea, Not Obama's (Update)

He's just networking for when he has to ask them for a job. Smart move. LOL.

As always Mr. Phelps, if you are caught, the administration will deny any knowledge of your activities.

This blog will self distruct in 5 seconds.

They need hunt him down and pull his passport.
What the hell is this moron doing. Does he not
know he is representative of USA and should have
our blessing.

Hmmm.. this is the country that knowingly conducted a debris spawning ASAT test above the ISS orbital altitude.... I hope he has a very long spoon.

Moreover, there is growing concern within the White House as to why Bolden is not getting the message that the White House has been sending to him.

Keith, what specific message is the White House sending Charlie B.? Is the "White House" for or against putting solid propellant boosters on the heavy lifter?

Editor's note: Huh? Did you miss the point too? Why does everything have to be about rockets. WH doesn't want him to make these trips, get it?

With any luck, his days are numbered. Just another example of appointing someone who has no idea of what it takes to run/ manage an agency as important to our country as NASA. Bolden reflects the same arrogance as his 'boss' and doesn't appear to care what he says, even if it goes against the Obama administration's wishes.

WH doesn't want him to make these trips, get it?

No, I don't get it. Please explain. Obama goes on lots of trips, so why can't Charlie B. emulate his boss?

Why does everything have to be about rockets.

What point are you trying to make there, Keith? That today's NASA is about ever so much more than mere space science and engineering?

I guess this is just another data point with respect to the current WH occupant's management skills. I guess controlling the vast bureacracy of the Executive branch really is not anything like organizing a community, is it? At this point, I would even HOPE that they put Garver in charge. At least it is clear that the WH holds her leash and she responds to their commands. Where is that saluting general?

If the Chinese government authorizes their participation in the ISS program which Major General Charlie Bolden (Ret.) is boldenly poised to go full speed ahead with, perhaps they will think twice about denying space to others by using orbital debris as a tool of policy control.

It will take a whole army of Congressman to stop Charlie because most people forget what he is capable of.

Someone has to be approving his travel. I doubt he is traveling on his own dime.

This is politically a very smart move on the part of Bolden in terms of his long term political career (if he wants one after all this), and in terms of Obama getting the job done (and I do believe it is in our national interest, these visitations) by a "wayward subordinate".

Obama doesn't have to take the heat for keeping various actors in the world engaged in the peaceful development of space (and the world), some of those actors being anathema to large swaths of America. Bolden carries himself as something of a noble character on the world stage if not at home.

Any peaceful world-wide engagement is a smart move from the State Departments viewpoint.

Since the White House really doesn't want a government operated manned space program, I guess Bolden's trying to find the true meaning of his job by "Walkin' the Earth like Caine in Kung Fu!"

Marcel F. Williams

Charlie's got something up his sleeve, he's not travelling on these visits for no reason at all. The big question is will he last until Christmas? Probably not.

As always Mr. Phelps, if you are caught, the administration will deny any knowledge of your activities.

This blog will self distruct in 5 seconds.

That is probably the closest to what is actually going on.

On the State Department's webpage I found this press release dated last November.
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2009/nov/131299.htm
"Secretary Clinton Announces New Initiatives to Bolster Science and Technology Collaboration With Muslim Communities Around the World"

After announcing the university professors who will act as special envoys the press release goes on to say:
"The envoys will be supported by new embassy officers who will also engage with international partners on the full range of environmental, scientific and health issues, from climate change and the protection of oceans and wildlife to cooperation on satellites and global positioning systems.

As shown by this webpage the State Department have a Special Representative to Muslim Countries.
http://www.state.gov/s/srmc/index.htm
This is not just a dead policy, Hilary Clinton wished Muslims a happy Eid last month.
http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2010/09/146952.htm

This is the WhiteHouse's Foreign Policy page on Science and Technology
http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy/presidents-speech-cairo-a-new-beginning/science-technology
NASA is not mentioned. However energy agreements with oil states are mentioned.

So NASA Administrator could be too high a rank for a fig leaf.

IMO, after all the bru ha ha after his last faux pas, I can't imagine he would be continuing to travel all over the world, unless the adminstration knows an approves of his travel. Perhaps they are even directing his travels.

You should do a poll Keith and see how many people feel that these travels are:
A. Being done on his own initiative.
B. Are being directed from above.

Comment to editor’s note: from your sources Gen. Bolden is outside the reservation when it comes to all these foreign trips he’s making. Well that doesn’t seem likely, since Charles Bolden is a Marine General and one thing they are trained to do is …. FOLLOW ORDERS. Lets review the facts we have 1: protagonist -Marine General (follows orders) 2. Marine General that sings the praises of Obama (Semper fi) 3. Marine General that Has gone on foreign trips and continues to do so even after so called missteps 4. Whitehouse that bungled the NASA FY2011 budget request release and has had to accept changes made by Congress (saving face and looking for scapegoat) 5. White House sources “leaking” to a blog that WH is not behind any of these trips and is powerless to make the General stop.What is more plausible here is that the WH or WH staffers are laying groundwork for throwing the General under the “bus”.
After reviewing these facts, it seems that only one of two conclusions can be drawn. Either the Marine General can’t get off of stupid and continues to do what the WH doesn’t want him to do (there is a possibility that a failure to communicate between the WH and CB exists or perhaps the General hasn’t “broken the communication code” neither seems likely) or the beginnings of a story line for dumping the General is beginning to emerge (likely outcome).

Regardless of the appearances Lori is running this show. Good day.

Strait off the grapevine. Word has it that a trip to North Korea has just been book.

If this trip is Charlie Bolden's idea, why does the article in space.com say that this trip and a reciprocal trip by the head of the Chinese Space Agency was agreed to during Obama's trip to Beijing last November?

Good catch Eric.

NASA should be reaching out to a country that is developing a viable human space flight program; maybe we can learn something. Of course all we can really offer China is really expensive Ops support (and maybe a Shuttle for their museum).

Although, it is hard to watch Bolden fly around the world while his Agency's Human Space Flight capability is being destroyed by arrogance and incompetence. Does Bolden know how truly messed up his Agency is, or is he just another senior management bobble head (smile, shake head up and down)?

STEM children of today, if you want to work on a new human space flight program, either go talk to SpaceX or learn Chinese.

Anyone taking bets on which country (USA or China) will put a human in space first after Shuttle is retired? At least we still have Russia.

Bolden's to learn a chapter from the private sector, eh?

Say Richard Branson, or Elon Musk... So do these guys not travel? Do they not go for commercial solutions? Do they stand by expensive and inflexible designs just so that they can keep the payroll (a.k.a. workforce) high?

If all these posts were not motivated mostly by politics, I'd actually think that pointing out the inconsistencies would be constructive...

The only thing Bolden didn't do well is fight the politically charged negative PR response to the administration's plan to go commercial with LEO access. Probably for the same reason - they realized that they can explain it till they are blue in the face, it wouldn't matter on bit. Better to just let the detractors bark and concentrate on doing.

We have a President laying out a plan to go to Mars, and a NASA administration that is willing, for the first time, to let go some of the fat that has accumulated around HSF. Well, the fat never likes being cut off, I guess.