Transcript The Politics of Science Don Medley Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Berkeley, California

The Politics of Science
Don Medley
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Berkeley, California
Thursday, June 25, 2009
The Superconducting Supercollider
A Cautionary Tale
The Superconducting Super Collider
(SSC), planned to be built mostly in
Waxahachie, Texas, would have been the
world's largest and highest-energy particle
accelerator complex.
Its planned ring circumference is 87.1 km
(54 miles) with an energy of 20 TeV per
beam, potentially enough energy to create a
Higgs boson, a particle predicted by the
Standard Model but not yet detected.
The ScSC: Death of High Energy Physics
Leadership in the United States
“Ultimately, in 1990, President George Bush (a Texas resident) decided the Texas bid was the most acceptable one.
Perceptions were that politics drove the decision more than scientific excellence although at this level, such qualitative
distinctions involve often very fine lines.
Despite some mutterings, the project was funded initially by Congress. Fairly quickly in the program's life, however, the
project came under fire especially as construction costs continued to escalate with projected total costs rising from $4.4
billion in 1987 to $8.25 billion in 1991 to $11 billion in 1993.
From a congressional perspective, the space station and ScSC came together as two high-tech projects operating with
out of control budgets. The explanations provided by ScSC supporters proved unconvincing in part because the science
suggested as so critical had little grounding in reality as understood by laypersons (who were no longer willing to
automatically accept the professionals' judgments.
As the budget vise grew tighter upon discretionary spending, the ScSC became even more controversial. In 1992, the
House struck down the ScSC but the Senate prevailed in conference. Later, in 1993, the House again moved to strike
funding for the ScSC, providing only shut down funding. The Senate resisted but ultimately gave up; given the
intransigent nature of the House's resistance to program continuation, further resistance was futile.”
Congress, constituency, and jobs: the Superconducting Super Collider, the Space Station, and National Science Policy*1
R. Handberg ,
Department of Political Science, Center for Space Policy and Law, University of Central Florida, HFA 414, Orlando, FL 32816-1356, USA
All that now remains
are 200,000 square
feet of still-vacant
factories and labs,
and over 30 km of
carved-rock tunnels
slowly filling with
water.
A Renaissance for Science Funding?
Yes, it started with the Bush Administration….
Fact Sheet: The American Competitiveness Initiative: Encouraging Innovation
President Discusses American Competitiveness Initiative
American Competitiveness Initiative
Today, President Bush Discussed His American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) – A Comprehensive Strategy To
Keep Our Nation The Most Innovative In The World. As the President outlined in his State of the Union Address, the
ACI commits $5.9 billion in FY 2007 and more than $136 billion over 10 years to increase investments in research and
development (R&D), strengthen education, and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation.
But, the Obama Administration is placing an
even greater emphasis on science.. Not just on
funding, but also on using science to guide
policy decisions.
Steve Chu, Secretary of Energy, Nobel Laureate
Steve Koonin, Under Secretary for Science, DOE, former Caltech
Provost
John Holdren, Science Advisor to the President, Former Harvard
Professor
Harold Varmus, Co-Chair, PCAST, Nobel Laureate and President
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
More importantly – stepping up to the plate with
funding “requests.”
FY2010 Budget Request Invests in the Sciences. Investments in science and
technology foster economic growth; create millions of high-tech, high-wage jobs
that allow American workers to lead the global economy; improve the quality of life
for all Americans; and strengthen our national security.
The recovery Act included a $5 billion investment in key science programs, which is
by itself an almost 50-percent increase for these programs over 2008 and
represents a significant down-payment toward the President’s plan to double the
funding for these agencies over 10 years.
Under the President’s doubling plan, the Budget provides a16-percent increase over
2008 funding levels for the National Science Foundation and similarly large
increases for the Department of Energy’s Office of Science and the Department of
Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Appropriations Process Timeline
2007 Continuing
Resolution
House and Senate 2008 Omnibus
Conference Legislation
------Final Passage
President transmits
Appropriations
budget to Congress Legislation Drafted
Appropriations
Budget Hearings
Jan
Feb
Mar
Committees
“Mark Up”
Legislation
April
May
Bills Passed by
House and by Senate
Continuing Resolution??
June
July
August
Recess
Aug
House Appropriations
Reports out
Energy and Water
Development Appropriations
Senate Appropriations
Reports out
Energy and Water
Development Appropriations
Sept
Oct
9/30
End of Fiscal
Year
Nov
Dec
FY2005
Omnibus
Signed into
Law
3 Simple Truths
1.
Members of Congress and their staff thrive on and
appreciate information
2.
Members of Congress are always looking for things to
do – oblige them
3.
If you don’t go to DC you should know that everyone
else is already there
Members of Congress and their
staff thrive on information
•
Staff have long lists of issue area responsibilities – you can make
their jobs easier
•
Keep it simple and understandable to the lay person – 8th to 10th
grade level is recommended
•
Whenever possible, link information to the Member’s district or state
– you’ll get their attention quicker and hold it longer
Members of Congress are always
looking for things to do – oblige them
•
Members of Congress are usually ready and willing to write letters
or have their staff make phone calls regarding programs and
projects – very typical type of congressional action
•
Congressional Record statements for anniversaries, major
milestones, retirements, etc.
•
Assistance on appropriations
If you don’t go to DC you should know
that everyone else is already there
•
Face time is important – phone calls and emails as follow up
•
Humility and empathy are critical – Members and staff are
important and busy, understand this and let them know that you
do
•
Effusive appreciation is absolutely required
“The squeaky wheel gets the grease,” statement by Congressman Zack
Wamp of Tennessee.