Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., says a floating museum in the Big Apple has the "inside track" to land a retired space shuttle.

Schumer may be full of hot air -- he often is -- but insofar as NASA's selection process gets politicized, it's impossible to count his home state out.

New York, Florida and some 20 other U.S. locales are vying to be the final resting place for three decommissioned shuttles -- Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavor. Discovery is all but promised to Washington's Smithsonian Museum, which would release its cannibalized Enterprise to one of the also-ran cities.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., is leading the charge for a bid by the Kennedy Space Center -- which would seem to be a no-brainer. All 132 shuttle launches have lifted off from there, with the final launch scheduled early next year.