The next president of the United States could be the first in that office to accept a phone call from the Moon and hear a woman’s voice on the line. To do so, they’ll first need to make a series of strategic space policy decisions. They’ll also need a little luck.
Author
- Thomas G. Roberts
Postdoctoral Fellow in International Affiars, Georgia Institute of Technology
supports outer space activities, so the U.S. president has an outsize role in shaping space policy during their time in office.
Past presidents have leveraged this power to accelerate U.S. leadership in space and boost their presidential brand along the way. Presidential advocacy has helped the U.S. land , establish with civil space agencies abroad and led to many other important space milestones.
But most presidential candidates refrain from discussing space policy on the campaign trail in meaningful detail, leaving voters in the dark on their visions for the final frontier.
For many candidates, getting into the weeds of their space policy plans may be more trouble than it’s worth. For one, not every president even gets the opportunity for meaningful and memorable space policy decision-making, since space missions can operate on decades-long timelines. And in past elections, those who do show support for space initiatives for .
But the 2024 election is different. Both candidates have executive records in space policy, a rare treat for space enthusiasts casting their votes this November.
As a , I am interested in how those records interface with the strategic and sustainable use of that domain. A closer look shows that former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have used their positions to consistently prioritize U.S. leadership in space, but they have done so with noticeably different styles and results.
Trump’s space policy record
As president, Trump established a record of meaningful and lasting space policy decisions, but did so while attracting more attention to his administration’s space activities than his predecessors. that predated his time in office.
The former president oversaw the establishment of the and the reestablishment of the , as well as the . These organizations support the development and operation of military space technologies, defend national security satellites in future conflicts and coordinate between federal agencies working in the space domain.
He also had the most productive record of in recent history. These policy directives clarify the U.S. government’s goals in space, including how it should both , and .
He has called his advocacy for the creation of the Space Force one of his of his term. However, this advocacy contributed to for the new branch. This polarization broke the more common for space programming.
Like many presidents, not all of Trump’s visions for space were realized. He successfully . But his explicit goal of astronauts reaching the lunar surface by 2024 was , given his budget proposal for the agency.
Should he be elected again, the former president may wish to accelerate by furthering investment in , which houses its lunar initiatives.
He may frame the initiative as .
Harris’ space policy record
The Biden administration has continued to support Trump-era initiatives, or . Its legacy in space is noticeably smaller.
As the chair of the , Harris has set U.S. space policy priorities and represented the United States on the global stage.
Notably, the Trump administration kept this position that the president can alter at will assigned to the vice president, a precedent the Biden administration upheld.
In this role, Harris led the to refrain from testing weapons in space that produce dangerous, long-lasting space debris. This decision marks an achievement for the U.S. in keeping space operations sustainable and setting an example for others in the international space community.
Like some Trump administration space policy priorities, not all of Harris’ proposals found footing in Washington.
The council’s plan to establish a framework for comprehensively in the U.S., for example, .
If enacted, these new regulations would have ensured that future space activities, such as or , pass critical safety checks.
Should she be elected, Harris may choose to continue her efforts to shape responsible norms of behavior in space and organize oversight over the space industry.
Alternatively, she could cede the portfolio to her own vice president, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who has virtually no track record on space policy issues.
Stability in major space policy decisions
Despite the two candidates’ vastly different platforms, voters can expect stability in U.S. space policy as a result of this year’s election.
Given their past leadership, it is unlikely that either candidate will seek to dramatically alter the long-term missions the largest government space organizations have underway during the upcoming presidential term. And neither is likely to undercut their predecessors’ accomplishments.
