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Vice President Kamala Harris presided over yet another humiliating failure on Monday after NASA was forced to postpone the launch of Artemis I, a giant new rocket the government hopes will play a key role in putting humans on the moon for the first time since 1972.
« Today is very much about showing the great work that happened here, » Harris told reporters minutes after the mission was scrapped due to an engine cooling issue. The vice president, who chairs the administration’s National Space Council, was at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to witness the launch. She later wrote on social media that, « While we hoped to see the launch of Artemis I today, the attempt provided valuable data as we test the most powerful rocket in history. »
POLITICO had previewed the « big day for Harris » in its Playbook newsletter. « There have occasionally been snickers about the fact that the VP chairs the administration’s National Space Council, » wrote reporters Ryan Lizza and Eugene Daniels. « What exactly does she do in that role anyway? Well, today the potential upside of that curious assignment will take center stage. »
Alas, like most endeavors involving Harris in recent years, the launch failed.
