Although details are still in flux, the transition team reviewing NASA and its activities has begun drafting potential executive orders for space policy changes under the Trump administration.
Sources familiar with the five people on the team, who have spent the past six weeks assessing the space agency and its exploration plans, noted that such teams are advisory in nature. They do not formally set policy, nor is their work always indicative of the direction in which a coming presidential administration will move.
Nevertheless, in their efforts to set clear goals for NASA and civilian space policy, the ideas being considered reflect the Trump administration's desire for “big changes” at NASA, both in terms of increasing effectiveness and speed of its programs.
Not as usual
The transition team has had to contend with an agency that has a plethora of field centers—10 across the United States, as well as a formal headquarters in Washington, DC—and large, slow-moving programs that are costly and have been costly. was slow to deliver results.
“This will not be business as usual,” said a person familiar with the group's meetings. The mindset driving their deliberations is a focus on results and speed.
In just under a month, on January 20, Donald Trump will be inaugurated as president for his second term. On that day, he is expected to sign a number of executive orders on issues he campaigned on. This could include space policy, but it is more likely that this will wait until later in his presidency.
