press club, charles bolden that to maintain the space shuttle -- spaceflight program. the former astronaut said he expects private companies to take cargo in less than a year. he is joined by mark kelly. this is about one hour. >> for more information about the national press club, visit our web site at press.org.

and want to welcome a audiences. we also produce a weekly podcast that you can get free as a download. we will have a q&a and answer as many questions as time permits up. i will introduce each of you. first a member of our speakers

committee. kantor shot. chair -- andrew shaw. chair of our defense committee. -- events committee. and then the only spells of a member of congress who has traveled in space and one of two siblings that traffic in space. husband to congress common gabrielle giffords. -- congress woman gabrielle

giffords. [applause] chris chambers, a journalist and professor. [unintelligible] correspondent at abc news. [applause]

today is newsmaker attention is not just about charlie bolden but also the future of nasa. it is about the vision of president barack obama and some harsh budgetary realities. with more than 18,000 employees, nasa runs 10 field centers. because global leadership through strategic and international relationships. it has a rich history. hamas the most as a play has been the space shuttle liftings. the shuttle program now in thing and no immediate replacement in sight. some critics are skeptical about what nasa may become.

there are building on the strength of nasa working with their partners. it is important to see what makes our speaker tick. in a couple of weeks, he will begin the third year as nasa's administrator. a retired major general. he was named administrator by the president in 2009. the pentagon insisted that he was to liable to them and would not allow him to receive and employment by president george bush.

they say he has a passion for education and they try to inspire young people. his father taught history during the second world war. and he was naturally involved in sports. he met his future bride when he was 3 years old. in high school, he was a water boy for his father's football team. the practice or work in washington. [laughter] he saved the game in 1963 when the first string quarterback was injured. he set his sights for the naval academy. that was not in the cards for the segregated south. after president kennedy was

assassinated, a navy recruiter not done his store. the rest is history. he was president of this class with the naval academy. he was stationed in thailand. he served during vietnam. he served a variety of positions in the marines. he was assigned to the naval test pilot school, where he completed training in 1979. one colleague was killed in the challenger disaster. nasa selected our guest speaker as a mass candidate in 1980. he missed the first african- american marine it to become an ask not.

[unintelligible] many important nasa assignment ended. in 1987, he was deputy commanding general. he served as commander of all in the first marine force in support of operation desert thunder in kuwait. he served as a commanding general in japan. he retired from the marine corps in two dozen 3. he has several awards and members. -- and metals.

he and his wife have two children. a son and a daughter. he is a proud grandfather as well. please give a warm welcome to an man who has won many hats. nasa administrator charles boldin. [applause] >> for looking out at this audience and recognizing those of you here, it is a very humbling feeling to have this opportunity to represent what i think are one of the two most

incredible organizations on the face of the earth. that is being nasa. the other is the united states marine corps. i am especially proud to represent the nasa team, to be joined by my deputy, who is a long time space enthusiast. she ran the national space society for a while. she is a space buff like i am. she has a son and 16-year old, a good football player. i was a lousy football player, blessed to have my starting quarterback go down, so i could get in the game. but not throw or run. when my starting quarterback was injured, five father saw me.

i could see his heart start to pound. he called me up and told me to go in. his only words to me were, do not throw a football. it was on the evening that the day that president kennedy was assassinated. it is a day i shall long remember as a dark evening, especially to be playing for the state championship in south carolina. when he sent me in and said, do not throw the ball, i did my best. as the game was winding down, my best friend came in with a play from the sidelines. it was a pass play. i've looked at my dad at the bench, and i knew gary made it up. i looked at my dad. i called the play.

gary was a good tight end and managed to cut the ball in the end zone. we won the game. i was a local hero for a moment. but he was a good quarterback. i call him my adopted son. i am really impressed with his ability. among an amazing group of astronauts, is captain mark kelly, who has already been introduced. and probably more important is the husband of a dear friend, gabrielle giffords. visited her in the hospital in houston. hardware one thing for my fraternity.

this is my i love gabrielle band. i wear it all of the time. it has become more special, because in a trip to europe, we had an audience with the pope. he blessed us. i count it special for me. mark has already been introduced. i want to thank you very much for your dedication and what you have done for nasa. it is not very special, something you did not have to do. i appreciate the sacrifice. [applause] it goes without saying that our continued bought and prayers are with gabrielle. we watched her ongoing maracas recovery.

we pray that it continues. nasa is going to launch its final space shuttle mission. we are turning a page on a remarkable time frame in american history in space. from the early exploits of daniel boone, lewis and clark, to the breakthrough journey said alan shepard and john glenn, americans have always been a curious people, old enough to imagine a new world, ingenious enough to chart a course to them, and courageous enough to go for it. the gift of knowledge and innovation that we have brought back from the unknown have played their part in building a more perfect union. some say our final shuttle mission will mark the end of americans 50 year dominance in the space industry. as a current nasa administrator, i'm here to tell you that american leadership in space will continue for at least the

next half century, because we have laid the foundation for success. for us, failure is not an option. we have the opportunity to raise the bar, to demonstrate what human beings can do if we are challenged and inspired to reach for something just outside of our grasp but not out of our site. president obama has given us a mission to focus again on the big picture of exploration, the crucial research and development required for us to move beyond where we are. we have the mission to carry out something that will take us further than we have ever been. he has asked us to plan a mission to an asteroid. our spacecraft is approaching one of the biggest in the solar system. we are scuttled to drop into orbit around that asteroid later

this month. did the president is asking us to harness that american spirit of innovation, the drive to solve problems with capabilities that are so embedded in our moon. that led us to the loa that american ingenuity is alive and well. it will help us win the future. but only if we put aside ever differences and come together to work hard, dream big, and imagine in the possibilities. the space shuttle is an amazing vehicle. an incredible program that has taught us many things to make tomorrow's expiration possible. every shuttle mission showcases the amazing talent and expertise of of our astronauts

in robotics and a science. each mission is different. each is exceptional and challenging and affect our capabilities as a nation and world. the international space station is the centerpiece of a cover human space flight activities for the coming decades. what a centerpiece it is. with almost 1 million pounds of hardware, measuring over the length of a football field, can't and interior volume > 747 aircraft, it travels around the earth 16 times. it is occupied by an international crew of six have actively participating in over 100 research observations at any given time. it has expanded our knowledge of man's ability to work in space. it has become one of the most

important beacons of corp. internationally in our earth. it is a stepping stone and a tip of what comes next. the research capabilities are unprecedented. the station house more than 1200 experiments a day. it supports more than 1600 scientists. every research and investigation in all of the systems that keeps its operational helps us figure of how to improve life here. studies of more bodies ensure that we can work and live successfully as we travel far from earth and butter to understand impacts of medical conditions both in space and on

earth. we are learning how to better and operate spacecraft independent of resources supplied from earth. we need to break the ties from our home planet and learn to live and work in space without threat dependent on earth. this can be a platform for us to learn these skills. we will improve the reliability of future life supports systems. all of the other things we will need to understand to become a people that can safely reach our destination. when i listen to media reports that the final shuttle flight marked the end of human space flight, i have to tell you, you must be living on another planet. we are not ending human space flight. we are we committed ourselves to

it and taking typical steps today to ensure our pre-eminence in a human space exploration for years to come. we have to do things different. we have to get out of the business of owning and operating corporate transportation systems and hand it off to the private-sector. we have to ensure safety of our astronauts. we have to focus on deep space exploration. ofneed to empower today's entrepreneur was to carry out the west. in getting crews into orbit will create jobs and expand opportunities to the american economy. i believe that american companies and their spacecraft should send our astronauts to the international space station, rather than adults force it to

foreign garment. that is what this nation is committed to. along with supporting the iss, we will have a deep space crew vehicle. we will make the technology and investment required. our destinations for human beings is very ambitious. that includes asteroids and mars. we will prioritize and logical statement of human exploration into mission. the debate is not if we are going to explore, but how we will do it. not if there will be human

spaceflight, but the right path to the next generation. a shuttle is an expensive system to maintain. now as the time to cut the transportation to the work order. and we need this to become a job-creating engine for decades to come. the mission will focus on the transportation system that will carry us beyond where we have been, to new destinations and milestones in the annals of human history. one week from a very important milestone is far from the final one. we celebrated the shuttle's 30 years of success, which is longer than any other human spaceflight program. it gives us a picture of what it means to be an astronaut. we salute to the men and women who had carried out the program's mission, both in space

and on the ground. we remember the hard lessons that have helped us to continue to improve safety. we shall always remember the cruise from the shuttle's such as the challenger, that made the ultimate sacrifice. i spent 14 years at nasa before leaving and then returning. some of my best friends died flying on the shuttle. i'm not that human spaceflight go away on my watch. i will not let it floundered because we foresee a path we cannot sustain. it is vital that we keep exploring, so we can live and work other places, and find out what it means for us as a human race, but also for the benefit of that exploration to continue.

we keep generating new knowledge about our plan in the universe in the new solutions that our challenges faces on new levels. president obama has put a fed the forefront of renovation for our country. we are pleased to be an essential part of this national focus on research and development, which will greatly improve our future. we will maintain and grow u.s. leadership in space and arrive all of the benefits that flow from it. tomorrow is taking shape right now. earlier this year, and made a decision to base a multipurpose vehicle model on the additional work we did on the zero ryan capsule.

the spacecraft will carry a certain amount of people. it is designed to be much safer during ascent and entry ban the shuttle. we want to work on the space launch system. these systems will open up the entire solar system to us. i have established program officers. in houston and the hunts bill, alabama respectively. we will work on upgrading the launch facilities to accommodate more types of users. we had a tremendous interest in leasing these assets. we are close to making

announcements about it soon. it will help these companies keep their costs down and create jobs for the space industry for tomorrow. one of the first customers will be one with a tourist take a rocket. we issued a call for proposals for mission concepts last week to study a solar electric propulsion system. it is one of the technologies we need to advance as we seek to reach those further destinations. consider how the architectural options will change as we develop space technology, for which there is wide consensus. inflatable habitats.

high bandwidth communications. radiation protection. precision navigation. continue to meet small stones. the new participants in the second round of the program have just met their first set of milestones required by nasa. they are on a path for continued success. my deputy had the chance to visit facilities for some of our partners like blue origin. they are working diligently and a testing hardware systems that are amazing. the energy and ideas in the field. this is part of the early days of of a push into the next chapter. in addition to our human

spaceflight progress, we have a large amount of amazing science explorations coming up. in a few months, we will launch juneau into jupiter. in september, we will launch something that will study the interior of the moon. we will take many more undercover missions to observe our planet. we will peer deeper into the universe. we will advance aeronautics research at the same time. we will create a safer, more environmentally friendly and efficient air travel network. it is true that the aerospace field faces many significant challenges.

challenges can serve as catalysts for innovation. no doubt we will have to develop more ways of doing business. the industry teams have shown exceptional creativity in finding ways to keep cost down through a new management technique, technical solutions, and innovation. america is leading by making hard choices. we are taking bold actions, because that is what we need to do to create and when the future. thanks to nasa and its partners, the brave and intelligent women that have soared into space, we now have a strong foundation from which to pursue these larger goals. the space shuttle give a tremendous insight in how humans live, travel, and work in space. because of the shuttle, we have

the breakthroughs in human health research that will inspire the next generation of leaders. we have choices today. do we want to keep repeating ourselves, or do we want to look at the pictures and and do inspirational things we have always challenge ourselves to do? my generation touched the moon. iss. built the we want to touch an asteroid and sending humans to mars. the status quo is no longer acceptable. we need future generations who can do more than what we can today. the students and engineers that i speak to around the world have a ton of energy and enthusiasm. they are excited about the chance to do something new, to be on the ground floor of the

next frontier of human exploration. to put their big ideas into practice. if you are studying a discipline today a you have a great career ahead of you, not just at nasa or at other government institutions. when the final shuttle landing occurs, and the cheers subside, we will keep on moving toward where we want to go next. your kids and my grandkids, they are going to do things today that we can barely three months. our nation has made great progress throughout its history by innovating systems -- solutions to meet challenges. these challenges motivate a technological work force, but also created new technologies along the way. these achievements inspired

generations to pursue challenges and the goals, created new industries, and improved our country and our world. 50 years ago, a young president gave nasa a grand challenge. they chose of gas a day not simplicity. in accomplishing the goal, nasa defined america and made a lasting impression on the national security and geopolitical landscape of our times. today we have another young president, barack obama, who has outlined an urgent national need to out-innovate, educate, and build our competitors, and created new capabilities that will take us further into the solar system and help us learn even more. president obama honors the

kennedy space legacy, but also challenges this nation with his vision for the next era of exploration. nasa is ready for the grand challenge. thank you all for blessing me by allowing me to be here. [applause] >> i thank the administrator. we have a lot of questions. of what to talk about the environment that we are talking about in washington.

it seems as though right now there are a lot of wheels in motion. there is a rift in the federal funding environment. they are trying to avoid a debt ceiling deadline down the road. we have a short-term problem and a long-term problem. can you talk about the risks you are talking about in the short term? >> america is a leader in space exploration. there is no question about that. we will explore. we will explore further into

deep space. we started a program six years ago with a very well-organized transition. we will effect of the close out the space shuttle program. we have the 2010 authorization act. it is signed into law by the president. bipartisan action, signed into law by the president. i am very confident that in spite of all else, our future is bright. it is most important that america remains the leader. have a primary focus after

shuttle is to make sure we have a viable domestic space industry, so we do not have to rely on international partners to get us to and from the space station. >> because of the budgetary environment, there seems to be a general acceptance of the idea that we need to handoff a good deal of this work to the private sector. america cannot afford a lot of things, is the risk growing that the government cannot be as much in the business of space in the future? >> of want to remind everybody that our work turn for providing access to the earth's orbit started the long before. haag's [unintelligible]

we have been doing that for years. the previous administration said we need to bring about a viable commercial industry so nasa can be about exploration. it detracts from the ability of our industry to grow and run an aspect of safelight. it did not start as a result of the crisis. it is not a response to the financial crisis, but a smart thing to do. -- i wanted to maintain the safety and the lookout for the safety of the crew's going to and from space. that has not changed.

we will safely and operate and oversee these systems. i am confident it will be done well. if you look at any of the major companies today, in many of them, you will see faces familiar to you. former astronauts in executive positions. there are orbital scientists right here. i am very comforted and confident that safety will not be compromised. we have so many transitioning not out of the business but to the new arena. >> it is not in the question but one that persist to some degree. some of our greatest space he

was testified on capitol hill such as neil armstrong to say that we think national security and a factor. and we are uncomfortable with the win business with the international partners to some degree and taking the tradition that we have within nasa and the government sector and transferring it to the private sector. to what degree can you recognize the validity of the argument they make? >> everybody you mentioned i consider a personal friend. many of them are my mentors in heroes. i respectfully disagree with the positions they have taken, because we are doing things in the national interest that will ensure our national security by facilitating the success of a viable industry. we will grow our technology and

jobs. what is most important to the nation today faced increasing our technological work force, ensuring that people have a place to work. the space program that president obama envisioned and my task to carry out is a viable commercial use the file we go in and explore. i cannot imagine what i see the telescope mission, i do not think anybody imagined what it would do to change our world, and were perspective of the universe. without that, the hubble -- would not be in this -- in existence today. we will continue to do that. i was with some congressional interns earlier.

anyone with a parent or relative that have to go to the hospital in an ems vehicle -- i said, was it strange that a doctor knew everything about their vital signs? that was not planned that way, it happened, because we decided following president kennedy, we would send humans to the moon. we realized we did not have that much cable. we have to find ways to know how of our astronauts are doing through wireless communications. that developed not because we knew we needed it, but because of necessity. that is what space exploration does. it is so important that i be able to carry out the vision of president obama for increasing the amount of technical -- a

logical to government as we do in this country. do not be fooled by anything that is said that space is not important. it is vital to our national security. >> -- there is a great deal of overlap between defense contract and the space business. have you car it is transferring some of this technology to governments that may be hostile -- hostile to us? >> there are many laws to make sure i do not do that. we will be a while without being able to do things in space, is what was said. that is not entirely accurate.

we will have access to the international space station for cargo. i talk about the critical importance of domestic capability because if we do not have to rely on international entities, there are certain things we can do that take care of the national security interests. growing international partnership and expanding outreach is a vital part of of a national security policy. we need to have our own domestic capability used when it is critical for us to do things alone. >> how soon will commercial companies be flying astronauts? how would you feel about flying commercially? >> i think when we ask the

commercial entities how long it will take, about three years after the first contract, we should have a viable commercial capability to take humans to space. some say they think it will take even shorter. what do i think? i would not be standing here talking it if i were not willing to go on it. people ask if i would fly if given the opportunity. i said, in a heartbeat. >> if someone had the money and in the russian space program, people have the money to buy a ticket. when do you see that opportunity

happening on a more appropriate basis? >> we are very close to having this capability to do some or all whites. -- flights. -- orbital flights. it is a vp of the allen church -- alan shepard first flight into space. someone goes into space and gets to you view our planet from an incredible vantage point. i think that is around the corner. not that many years away, if not a couple of years. >> considerable -- what is the future of the astronaut corps and how to you motivate and

retain those attracted to it? >> i do not have a problem attracting people to the astronaut -- astronaut corps. i have a problem selecting out of the thousands that apply. america is the leading nation in terms of exploration and that attracts the young men and women. they see there is a real possibility to go to space, because we are not leaving space. there are opportunities to fly into space as soon as they have the opportunity. we will get them there. even more people can have the opportunity to venture into space. we are attracting young people

to follow in my footsteps. >> make a statement. >> mark kelly needs no introduction. he has become quite a figure. he decided he would split his time. he is an incredible husband and a father and commander for space shuttle missions. he was commander for the last flight of endeavor. i consider him a true friend. please come forward and give us a message. [applause] >> it is good to be here. i appreciate the kind words

about the time i spent in nasa. it has been a tremendous honor to be an astronaut and follow in the footsteps of some really great pioneers and as so many others that have led us into the space age. i have been privileged to take four trips into space to the international space station. it has been an amazing ride. s.i. a watchiss fade in the -- as i watched iss kadish in the distance, i cannot help but think what an amazing accomplishment this has been. the vision to build a strong international partnership is what made this such a great

success. we now have a completed and incredible laboratory in space. i expect that this new instrument will revolutionize part of physics research and add to the significant discoveries that will be the legacy of the space station program. the detector was paid by 16 different countries, different universities and a physicist in a vault. physicists involved.

it invokes at the galaxies, millions of years after the big bang. nasa will tell us what are those things made of. when the universe was created, there was a lot of hydrogen and helium. we know there was a lot of matter. when something comes out of nothing, if there is a positive, there should be a negative. there should have been a lot of matter and anti-matter. we do not know what happened to the anti-matter. nitrogen and other elements are created inside of stars.

if there is anti-master or oxygen, it would be created inside of a star as well. we track this to see if it came from a star made of anti-matter. a lot of the galaxies we look at may not be made out of stuff like this, but the opposite of that post. it is going to add to the space program. this will open a new chapter in space that will open up new dimension in earth's orbit.

it will be exciting to see the next generation of restaurant -- astronauts. it is going to be something. i cannot help but reflect on how we have been a nation of explorers for over 200 years. it is our responsibility to maintain that leadership in the exploration of space. president kennedy made a had a -- had a quotation. many of you have been following the recovery of my waf -- wife gabrielle. we are so appreciative of the outpouring of support, the hopes and prayers of some many people

are a tremendous source of strength to her, me, family, friends, and her staff. i love her very much. i love the space shuttle very much. it has been very get to this country. it is difficult to let go. the space shuttle will rocket off the planet one last time. the town many have seen this before? i am assuming everyone else has seen a space shuttle in person? you may have not. you have one week to figure it out. as atlantis heads off on its last mission, we can be sad for a little while.

that is ok. nasa will open a new and exciting chapter. we will continue to inspire a four children and continue to be a great investment for the american people. i announce my retirement from the navy a couple of weeks ago. it is great to completed by planting the space shuttle in june. it was the highlight of my career. there has been speculation about my plans, if i plan to run for public office. you must be a slow summer out there. i will go into more detail about that next week when i visit iowa and new hampshire. [laughter] in all seriousness, my main

focus right now and for the foreseeable future is the recovery of gabrielle and spending more time with my kids. she is the politician in the family. i am the guy. i see no reason to change that now. [applause] >> we are almost out of time. i have a couple of housekeeping matters to take care of. i want to remind you about our upcoming speakers. july 15, tamiami strong willed us -- tim armstrong will discuss the future of journalism.

i do have a last question. i will get to the other part. what was your favorite food? >> shrimp cocktail. real jumbo shrimp with cocktail sauce. we use dehydrated food so add some water and it is back to normal. >> favorite food in space? charlie stole my answer. those cupcake's are pretty good. the way the package stuff, it would be smashed down. we have a 400 options for food. i like the creamed spinach.

some think it is pretty disgusting. >> we have a coffee mug. i noticed short haircuts. i but like to present you both with a complementary space baseball cap. how about a round of applause for our speakers today. [applause] i but like to thank all of you for being here. you can find out more about the national press club at our website. thank you. we are adjourned.

[applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] -- 2011] [unintelligible]

>> next, your calls and comments on "washington journal." ken and discussion on the oil spill in the gulf of mexico. then a senate hearing on data security. >> he had gone out and got a pistol. he began tracking him. >> on september 6, 1901, and anarchist fired two fatal shot at president william mckinley. .