Hmm... that came out as pretty partisan, but it wasn't my primary intent. To state my position better I'll cite another example.
Under the previous administration billions of dollars were handed over to the U.S. auto industry to develop more efficient and effective personal transportation. Very early efforts showed that people are not going to accept mass transit systems to a much greater extent than they do now. At least not in the near term. The practicality of electric cars intermixed with the other prevailing types of propulsion on the roads didn't look very good either.
So the program rapidly matured into an effort to develop hybrid (typically gas/electric) vehicles. These wouldn't have the range and speed limitations of electric cars, and would still result in very good savings in the amount of fuel consumed. Diesel/electrics aren't very feasible in the U.S. because of the sulfur levels in diesel fuels here, though Europe's cleaner fuels might make it work.
Well, the Big 3 here were required to produce a working model at the end of the process, and they did just that. That, and nothing else at all except vague promises of future (still to be realized years later) product introductions. The Japanese seem to have taken the threat of this new arena of competition very seriously, and have their own fuel situation to consider as well.
Now both Toyota and Honda have products lines which have been on the market for years. Each new product announced has been an improvement too. Where are the big 3?
Well, we still see "coming soon" each year at the Auto show. But so far everything that even looks close to production someday soon is based on licensed Japanese technology!.
Where did those billions go?
And now of course we're in the midst of another massive round of Federal funding for hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. So far this is a very dubious technology, and recapitulates many of the errors that the prior decade's program experienced in the "all electric" period. The blank check is very much larger this time too.
And where are the advances being introduced to the market even so this time? Japan once again, without those U.S. billions. This response seems to one more time be directly due to artificial market conditions engendered by Federal (and State, don't forget California) policy.
So the lesson here is simple. If you want government to "so something" about a technology issue you do not shovel money to U.S.-based multinationals. You get nothing for your dollars.
Where did the "hybrid" money go? That's easy, high-ranking corporate officers' and shareholders pockets! Most of the money was handed out to public universities for research that was not guided or coordinated and was not required to achieve a result. This "contribution" was used to offset tax liabilities of the Big 3. So as you see, the $$ were simply laundered on their way to enriching the wealthy further.
And this is what we should be watchful of when it comes to funding a "Mars Mission."
NASA is not the organization it was in the 60s. They'll probably be reduced to "contract managers" who simply sign the checks for large-scale contracts.
