Kinsman spoke up. "Sir, if it hadn't been for our Moonbase program, and the cooperative Soviet program that's linked to it, the Aerospace Force would have had to surrender its entire manned spaceflight capability to NASA several years ago."
"I understand that. Major," said Marcot. "But the Appropriations Committee is not impressed."
"Their attitude is disastrous," General Sherwood agreed. "If they have their way, they'll shoot down Moonbase and the spaceplane. They'll leave us entirely defenseless in space. What good are the ABM satellites if we can't protect them against Soviet interceptors?"
Marcot lit another cigarette, then rummaged through his messy papers. "State Department doesn't agree. Sent a memo . . . it's here someplace . . ."
"The State Department," Sherwood muttered, real loathing in his voice.
Colt said, "It's like our military presence in Antarctica. We've got to show the Soviets that we're able and willing to defend our interests, wherever they are."
"The Russians are going ahead with their share of the lunar base," Colonel Murdock said, his voice sounding almost hopeful.
"All the more reason for us to be up there alongside them," Sherwood said. "We must not allow them to have the Moon for themselves."
Feeling like a tightrope walker. Kinsman said, "With all due respect, sir, the Appropriations Committee won't be impressed by that argument. Senators like McGrath are dead-set against anything that looks like the old Space Race of the Sixties."
Marcot peered at him through a haze of smoke. "Mc- Grath," he murmured.
"That's why we initiated the hospital program." Kins- man went on. "The old Air Force pioneered in flight medicine and it would be in keeping with Aerospace Force traditions and missions to build a hospital on the Moon. That would give us a presence on the Moonplus a role that has real meaning."
"And whose idea was it," Marcot asked, "to make the base a joint Soviet-American project? Durban's, wasn't it? Him and his internationalist pipe dreams!" 199
'That was done for funding purposes," Kinsman said. "It was easier to get the program started by showing that the Russians were going to share its costs."
"Well, the funding is about to run out," Marcot grum- bled. "Our munificent Congress is backing out of the program now that the preliminary explorations are finished and it's time to commit major money for the permanent base."
"And we can't expect the SDI guys to divert funds from their program," General Sherwood said.
"Maybe we should forget about the Moon and concen- trate on the antimissile defense. If we can prevent the Soviets from putting up their own version of Star Wars ..." Marcot let his voice trail off.
"Leave the Moon to the Russians?" General Sherwood sounded almost alarmed.
"What good is the Moon?" Marcot asked. "It has no real military value."
Colt pointed out, "It will when it starts supplying fuels and expendables like oxygen for the SDI satellites. And for the factories the corporations claim they want to build."
"That's ten years away," Marcot said. "Twenty."
