Drawing on published literature, archival sources in both the United States and Europe, interviews with key participants, and important declassified material, McDougall presents the stories of the U.S., European, and Soviet space programs as fascinating examples of comparative public policy. McDougall argues that the Soviet Union made its way into space first because it employed the world's first "technocracy." Discussing the political leadership of Khrushchev, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson, he makes clear why the United States quickly developed its own version of state-driven technology, how it succeeded, and what it cost - materially and morally.