Moon is part of Mars

[Fake Messiah]

I think the Great Carrot was trying to communicate that going back to the moon was part of the plan to go to Mars, i.e a staging area.

Nah. Let's face it: the guy who thinks that windmills cause cancer and how there is a great conspiracy behind removing CFC from hairsprays because "it can't harm the ozone since it is used indoors", probably also thinks that Moon is indeed part of Mars.

Nevertheless, talking about carrots, the "Mars carrot" was something that W. was also using in his midterm elections. He was promising how he has a plan of humans colonizing Mars and then the solar system.