Mark Whittington has a cogent point about the congressional handwringing over the potential and uncertain costs of a mulit-decade space program.

I suspect that had Medicare been subjected to these kind of requirements back in the mid 1960s, it would never have passed.

Not to mention the president's recent prescription drug program.

Of course a lot of people did suggest that the drug benefit's cost would explode. And they were proven right far earlier than anyone imagined.

One factor that's missing today that was present in the case of Medicare is Presidential leadership and lobbying. To tweak a tiresome cliche, Bush ain't no LBJ.

Is there any evidence that anyone in the administration, other than Sean O'Keefe, is doing anything to support the initiative in Congress?