'Chainsaw and meat-ax’ budget cuts headed for key security agency as foreign threats grow

Space threats against the US are rising from China and Russia, and one of the government agencies that helps the Space Force protect against threats is facing major cuts, according to Politico reports.

Speaking at the Politico Security Summit, Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman told the outlet that China has created a “series of hundreds of satellites that are a sensor network that provide real-time updates, targeting quality information of our force.”

At the same time, the General, who leads the Space Force, claims, “the Russians are demonstrating reckless aggressive behaviors with regards to how they intend to contest the space domain.”

He added that the Beijing and the Kremlin deal to build a joint nuclear power plant and research station on the moon by 2030 is in direct competition with the U.S.-led Artemis moon mission.

As Saltzman monitors the activity of China and Russia, NASA - the agency that collaborates with the Space Force on policy, space transportation, and human space flight – is facing steep cuts.

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“You’ve got this incredible agency populated by what I call a bunch of wizards that, on a daily basis, make the impossible possible,” Former NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said a the Security Summit. “And you are going at them with a chainsaw and a meat-ax.”

Politico reports, “Trump is proposing a $6 billion cut to NASA funding in his budget, which the White House released the broad outlines of this month.”

“You are going directly at what NASA is all about, which is a science, research, and development agency with cutting-edge technology, and you’re cutting the guts and the heart out of that,” Nelson said.

The outlet claims the only area the White House wants to increase spending at NASA is the human space exploration efforts. However, it is not clear if the House budget plans will make room for that priority.

“That’s like eating our seed corn,” Nelson said. “We’re not going to have anything to plant next year in the quest of trying to understand what is part of the statutes for NASA, which is to search for life, and therefore to understand who we are, what we are, and where we are.”