副总统卡玛拉•哈里斯给她的工作增加了另一个重点:国家航天委员会。
白宫高级官员周六证实，拜登政府将维持在特朗普政府下恢复的国家空间委员会，哈里斯将担任主席。
官员们说，国家航天委员会的基本目标是国家安全基础科学、技术发展和对美国商业部门经济增长的贡献都将在哈里斯的领导下得到保持，并补充说副总统还将努力“在委员会上留下自己的个人印记”
哈里斯计划特别关注几个领域，包括可持续发展商业空间活动官员们说，和平的边界和负责任的太空行为，以及气候变化和加强太空系统的网络安全。她还将关注STEM教育和劳动力的多样性。
据官员称，副总统将与拜登任命的国家航天委员会文职执行秘书合作，政府目前正在努力填补这一职位。
当被问及哈里斯的做法与她的前任、前副总统迈克·彭斯有何不同时，一位官员表示:“我认为她处理这件事的方式只是为了完成任务，并以此来引导我们的太空政策，而不是真正专注于大型展示。”。
新的责任增加了哈里斯作为副总裁的不断增长的投资组合。自政府成立以来，拜登就赋予哈里斯以下任务领导工作解决中美洲移民的根本原因，并宣布哈里斯将领导在美国实施通用宽带互联网，除此之外，她还帮助推销他的雄心壮志基础设施和计划生育。
一名政府官员强调，国家航天委员会在哈里斯日益增加的责任清单中具有同等的重要性。
他们说:“总统和副总统不仅非常重视这一点，他们知道这对创新、创造力和美国的竞争力是多么重要——这是总统在周三晚上的联合讲话中谈到的。”
“这并不是说一个优先事项比另一个更重要，但这些是政府认为重要的事情……这是重要的工作，是关键的工作，也是副总统乐于做的工作。”
迄今为止，拜登政府在很大程度上保持了特朗普政府的空间政策，继续支持在特朗普和美国国家航空航天局(NASA)阿尔特弥斯计划(Artemis)下创建的太空部队(Space Force)，旨在将宇航员送回月球，并在那里发展持续的存在，为人类太空旅行的下一个前沿:火星做准备。
拜登表示支持美国国家航空航天局最近的成就，“毅力”探测器今年2月成功着陆火星。
“我只是-我只是不能告诉你，我相信历史学家会写多少关于你在做这件事的时候做了什么，”拜登告诉项目背后的团队待命在三月。"你应该为自己的所作所为感到骄傲。"
“我们可以在火星上着陆。我们可以战胜流行病。有了科学、希望和远见，作为一个国家，没有什么是我们做不到的，”他补充道。
Vice President Kamala Harris to chair National Space Council
Vice President Kamala Harris is adding another priority to her portfolio: The National Space Council.
Senior White House officials confirmed Saturday the Biden administration would maintain the National Space Council that was revived under the Trump administration -- and that Harris would serve as chair.
The officials said the National Space Council's basic objectives --national security, basic science, technological development and contributions to U.S. economic growth in the commercial sector -- will all be maintained under Harris' leadership, adding that the vice president will also try to "put her own personal stamp on the Council."
Harris is planning a particular focus on several areas, including sustainable development ofcommercial space activity, peaceful borders and responsible behaviors in space, as well as climate change and enhancing cybersecurity in space systems, the officials said. She will also focus on STEM education and diversity in the workforce.
The vice president will work with a civilian executive secretary of the National Space Council appointed by Biden -- a position the administration is currently working to fill, according to officials.
"I think her approach to this is just going to be to get the job done, and use this to lead our space policy, and not really focus, perhaps as much on big displays," one official said when asked how Harris' approach would differ from that of her predecessor, former Vice President Mike Pence.
The new responsibility adds to Harris' growing portfolio as vice president. Since the start of the administration, Biden has tasked Harris withleading the effortsto address the root causes of migration from Central America and announced Harris would lead implementing universal broadband internet in the U.S., all in addition to her role helping to sell his ambitiousinfrastructure and family plan.
An administration official stressed that the National Space Council would have equal importance on Harris' growing list of responsibilities.
"The president and vice president not only take this very seriously, they know how important it is in terms of innovation, in terms of creativity, in terms of the competitiveness of the United States -- something the president talks about in his joint address Wednesday evening," they said.
"It's not that one priority is more important than the other, but these are things that the administration believes is important … it's important work, it's critical work, and work that the vice president is elated to do."
So far, the Biden administration has largely kept Trump administration space policy in place, continuing support for the Space Force created under Trump and NASA's Artemis program, aimed at returning astronauts to the moon and developing a sustained presence there as preparation for the next frontier in human space travel: Mars.
Biden showed his support for the most recent NASA achievement, the Perseverance rover's successful landing on Mars in February.
"I just -- I just can't tell you how much I believe historians are going to write about what you did at the moment you all did it," Biden told the team behind the projecton a callin March. "You should take such great pride -- such great pride in what you did."
"We can land a rover on Mars. We can beat a pandemic. And with science, hope and vision, there's not a damn thing we can't do as a country," he added.
