“America’s space economy and America’s space agenda is really on fire right now,” says NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “That’s in large part because of President Trump and in fact bipartisan support in the House and Senate. What we are doing is inspiring the nation for American greatness to go out decades into the future. It really is starting right now with America’s and President Trump’s Moon to Mars program. Without him, this would not be happening.”

Jim Bridenstine, Administrator of NASA, discusses the NASA Economic Impact Report that was released today and says that under Trump America’s space agenda is on fire:

America’s Space Agenda Is Really On Fire

Today’s NASA Economic Impact Report is about direct economic output. What’s not in the report are all of the advancements that come from NASA that get commercialized over decades. For example, satellites and internet broadband. Then from there, we think about not just communications but navigation, how we produce food, and how we produce energy. Also, how we predict the weather, how we do disaster relief, and national security.

President Trump is as focused as any president in history on America’s space agenda. That’s not just exploration. It’s also national security and defense. I used to say, President Trump is more supportive of space than any president since John F. Kennedy. But I will also tell you, John F. Kennedy didn’t create the Space Force. America’s space economy and America’s space agenda is really on fire right now. That’s in large part because of President Trump and in fact bipartisan support in the House and Senate.

Economic Impact Of Artemis: 120,000 Jobs by 2021

The economic impact of the Artemis Program alone is over 60,000 jobs in 2019. The agenda to get to the Moon is ramping up right now. By 2021, those numbers are going to double. These are not low paying jobs. These are high tech jobs employing highly qualified people. These are the kind of things that also inspire the next generation to go into the STEM fields to make sure that America remains preeminent in technology.

If you just walk around NASA today and ask people why they work at the agency, they will tell you about how inspired they were when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon. Then we did five Moon missions after that. What we are doing is inspiring the nation for American greatness to go out decades into the future. It really is starting right now with America’s and President Trump’s Moon to Mars program. Without him, this would not be happening.