When Newt made the statement about a moon station, he was talking to an audience of NASA employees and unemployed NASA ex-employees. How can anyone fault him for giving them hope of a better future and a reason to hang in there?
What you say Nan is true. A Florida, NASA audience in need of many jobs and a spark of hope. What goes unsaid, chilling in the freezer, is that Newt when queried about his remarks, plainly stated he would expect a NASA future funded with 80%-90% private money!
Perhaps he should have said that in his NASA speech, but borrowing from China to save NASA would never be a part of a Gingrich equasion to revive NASA.