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[edit] Source needed

Last I checked, the USMC was looking into orbital shuttles to deploy troops to various parts of the world quickly.

Can someone prove me wrong, or does this need a reworking?

That sounds extremely unlikely. It would be far cheaper and quicker to send troops by aircraft, because they can take off at literally a few minutes notice, launch in virtually any weather, require no launch window, can land at far more airfields, have far larger payload capacities, a far better safety record, they can operate under cover with false markings etc. I can't see any advantage in moving troops by space shuttle, only massive disadvantages.

[edit] West Wing

I could be wrong but I think there were only two American astronauts in the space station and one Russian. Anyone know for sure?

[edit] Vandenberg Air Force Base and Space Shuttle Program

The US Air Force had well-established (and very public) plans to launch its own missions from the Vandenberg Launch Centre in California. This was a follow up to the aborted 'Dyna Soar' spaceplane program of the late 50's / early 1960's and the 'Manned Orbiting Laboratory' Air Force space station project of the mid 1960's. Neither of these systems ever progressed beyond the drawing boards, but some of the launch facilites intended for them at Vandenberg were to be re-used for military space shuttle flights.

Things were advanced far enough by the mid 1980's that the launch pad, runway and assorted support buildings were pretty much completed, and the test vehicle Enterprise had spent much time there, assisting in fit checks and ground support training. In fact, the orbiter Discovery was supposed to be permanently transferred to Vandenberg in early 1986. While the shuttle would still be 'owned' by NASA, the crews and payloads would be supplied by the military.

The Challenger disaster led to a comprehensive review of the shuttle program, and the plans for Vandenberg were scrubbed. This was partly due to a new strategy of launching military cargo on expendable rockets wherever possible. As well, some serious design flaws in the launch pad at Vandenberg could not be rectified without considerably more time and money. In the end, the Air Force shuttle facilities were decommissioned and never used for their intended purpose.