Living close to Vandenberg, I can assure you that the taxpayer actually gets something for that money. I see and hear the product of the dollars spent lifting cargo into orbit quite regularly.
OTOH, I have never seen a tiny bit of tangible benefit from consultancies getting paychecks from NASA to make presentations about equity and environmental justice, which was a big push from our national space agency until very recently.
OTOH, I have never seen a tiny bit of tangible benefit from consultancies getting paychecks from NASA to make presentations about equity and environmental justice, which was a big push from our national space agency until very recently.