Gov. DeSantis proposes moving NASA headquarters to Florida's Space Coast
CAPE CANAVERAL - A proposal by Gov. Ron DeSantis to relocate NASA's headquarters from Washington D.C. to the Kennedy Space Center has drawn mixed reactions.
Speaking to a crowd at the Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island, DeSantis said he spoke with NASA director Bill Nelson about the idea and there was "interest." The governor said moving to Florida makes sense.
"I was talking to the director before we came out here, there is interest in moving the headquarters of NASA to Kennedy Space Center and I'm supportive of that. They have this massive building in D.C. and like nobody goes to it. So why not just shutter it and move everyone down here," he said. "Hopefully with the new administration coming in, they'll see a great opportunity to headquarter NASA on the Space Coast."
"Why wouldn't you want to move NASA's headquarters to the busiest spaceport in the world," said Rob Long, CEO of Space Florida, the aerospace economic development agency of the state.
Long said he would welcome the move.
"It makes logical sense to me anyway to want to take the headquarters of the nation's space agency and put it in the state that is already leading across the space industry in general, and in research and in talent. It makes a lot of sense," said Long.
However, not everyone agrees.
Dr. Ken Kremer, a research scientist and the editor of "Space Up Close," thinks it's a really bad idea.
"It's bad policy for the public and it is bad politically," he said.
Kremer said it's important for NASA to stay in the nation's capital to ensure funding.
"Basically, all of the programs are spread across the country. You want expertise and political support from across the country. If they concentrate everything in Florida, then no one else will care," he said.
During his remarks at the space center, DeSantis did not elaborate on a timeline or any other future action he plans to take.
CBS affiliate WKMG contributed to this report.