ABSTRACT
In 1957, when the President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC) was established, science advice to the government was unorganized and sporadic. Management of science and allocation of resources to science is, perhaps, the less important function of a scientific presence in the White House. Yet the President's power in the extremely important allocation of resources to various scientific enterprises remains secure. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), as well as the Domestic and Economic Policy Councils, are his creatures; and the course of science within government is probably still influenced more by decisions of the OMB and the Executive Councils than by any other actors. Had President Reagan had an independent PSAC, it would almost surely have recommended against Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), and its advice, reflecting the arms control dogma of the past thirty years, would probably have been wrong.
