The Wrong Stuff?

MSNBC - NASA chief: China will beat US back to moon:

“I personally believe that China will be back on the moon before we are,” NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said in a low-key lecture in Washington two weeks ago, marking the space agency’s 50th anniversary, still a year away.

“I think when that happens, Americans will not like it. But they will just have to not like it.”

Griffin’s candor startled many in the space community, but insiders acknowledge the reality. China has pulled off two manned spaceflights with its own rockets and is eager to head for the moon.

This is an incredibly discouraging mindset for the NASA administrator to have. I wonder how effective he can be in leading the U.S. space program when he has this kind of attitude?  Don't we need someone with a "can-do" attitude, someone willing to do everything possible to focus national attention, interest, and funding on the larger goals of space exploration? Or, perhaps he is merely playing the China in an attempt to rouse our competitive spirit?