Does the GOP Expect to Find Gold on Mars?

An AP story notes:

The Senate is just getting started in advancing its versions of the annual spending bills, the core job of Congress each year. On Thursday, the Appropriations Committee approved a $30.7 billion measure funding the Energy Department’s budget as well as flood control projects cherished by lawmakers … On Bush’s plan to eventually send man to Mars, the House on Wednesday rejected by a 259-163 vote a move by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., to stop early stage preparatory work to send U.S. astronauts to Mars as the House debated a $59.8 billion measure funding. Frank contended the Mars initiative is unaffordable at a time when agencies, including NASA, are struggling with a clampdown on their budgets. “Sending human beings to Mars … is a luxury that this country cannot now afford,” Frank said. “The justification for sending people to Mars is political. It is psychological. It is cultural. It is not scientific.”

Whether Congressman Franks is correct about the Mars expedition being just a luxury – the GOP is not telling us how they will pay for the program or for the flood control projects. Unless they do find gold on Mars – we are talking about another increase in the Birth Tax.