Nelson asks Obama to redirect stimulus bucks to NASA

President Barack Obama should redirect unspent stimulus dollars to fund the U.S. space program, a key senator said Thursday.

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), a former astronaut who has long advocated for the space flight program headquartered in his home state, said he asked the president to use leftover stimulus money to boost NASA.

"I’ve asked the president to use money from leftover stimulus funds,” Nelson said in a statement. “I’ve also asked him to help minimize the job losses after the space shuttle is retired, in part, by transferring other NASA-related work to Cape Canaveral."

Nelson's request comes after a White House report, authored by the so-called "Augustine Commission," said that the space program "appears to be on an unsustainable trajectory."

The report recommended that the U.S. pursue more aggressive goals in human space exploration, but warned that the funding may not be there for such pursuits.

Nelson asserted that Obama had offered assurances on adequate funding for NASA.

"He’s assured me that NASA will get enough money to do what it does best: go explore the heavens," Nelson said.

“Whatever the president chooses, I will continue to fight to get NASA the funding it needs for the next generation of human spaceflight,” the Florida Democrat added. “It’s critical for Florida and the country.”