Response to Christopher Scolese

Christopher J. Scolese, the Acting NASA Administrator who was appointed by President Obama earlier this year, encouraged NASA employees to become active gay rights proponents which he claimed reflects "American Values". His agency wide memo stated: "I encourage you to participate in the programs and activities planned at your NASA center in your community for LGBT Pride Month. If there aren't yet planned events at your center, I encourage you to organize one." (emphasis added)

Florida Family Policy Council President John Stemberger issued the following statement in response:

It is stunning that the NASA Administrator would pander to the Obama Administration by promoting activities which "celebrate" aberrant forms of sexual conduct and are completely off-mission and counter productive to the best interests of children, families and the common good of society. NASA's work is critical, exacting and if not done properly, life threatening. With all the challenges, and tragedies that NASA has had in its past, it is unconscionable that its administrator would promote this type of a distraction and internally divisive social activism. This overtly political move is not only entirely inappropriate, but breeds bad internal morale and disrespects the rights of conscience of tens of thousands, if not the vast majority, of NASA's own 300,000 employees, who dissent and sincerely object to the promotion of sexual activism. "NASA's stated mission is to 'pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research'. Promotions of specific sexual orientations over others clearly is outside of NASA's mission and is being paid for by tax payers dollars. NASA should be for advancing scientific space research objectives, not engaging in homosexual activism."