RAND SIMBERG: The Shelby Swindle. NASA is forced to spend a half-billion dollars on a canceled rocket, and Rand observes: “It’s always useful to note that half a billion dollars is about what SpaceX has spent to date on: creating a company, purchasing/leasing/modifying test, manufacturing and launch facilities, developing from scratch and demonstrating engines, two orbital launch systems, and a pressurized return capsule.”

Related: “Perhaps the most dysfunctional Congress in history.” Well, at least it’s over.