After World War II, what did the United States do to help make sure to develop its rocket technology?

One thing the United States did to continue its development of rocket technology was to invest millions of dollars in development. This military project eventually grew into the space program, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration was established in the late 1950s to run these efforts. But all of this spending may have been in vain if not for the expertise of German-born rocket scientists. Throughout World War II, the Nazi regime had worked on developing rocket-carried bombs, ultimately finding success with the V-2 near the end of the war. As the war came to an end, the United States rounded up many of these experts as part of Operation Paperclip. This project was given real urgency by the fact that the Soviet Union was attempting to locate the same scientists. These scientists, most notably Werner von Braun, contributed to the development of rocket technology in essential ways. The fact that many of them, especially von Braun, had extensive knowledge of death camps, and had used Jewish slave labor on their projects in Germany, has brought much criticism to the program after the fact.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-us-government-brought-nazi-scientists-america-after-world-war-ii-180961110/