Elon Musk Strikes Back: SpaceX's Dragon Spacecraft Retires Amid Trump-Musk Feud
SpaceX boss, Elon Musk, declares the retirement of the spacecraft capsule
In a heated response to President Donald Trump's threat to pull government contracts from his companies, tech tycoon Elon Musk announced that SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft would go offline, causing a significant stir in the US space travel sector. Currently, the Dragon spacecraft is the sole American vehicle capable of transporting NASA astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS).
Musk took to X to express his intent to discontinue the Dragon spacecraft services immediately, following Trump's assertion that government contracts for his companies could be revoked. The Dragon spacecraft's contract, valued at around $5 billion (approximately $4.4 billion), plays a pivotal role in the US space travel, as Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, although developed, had to abort its first manned flight due to technical issues, leaving the astronauts stranded on the ISS before they eventually returned with a SpaceX capsule.
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin has made some space forays, but its contributions have been limited compared to SpaceX. The USA had relied on Russian spacecraft after the demise of the Space Shuttle program, until the Dragon was operational. Musk's announcement could be considered as a countermeasure to Trump's decision to replace Jared Isaacman, Musk's ally, as planned NASA chief due to his failure to align with Trump's "America First" agenda.
Financial Markets Tumble as Trump-Musk Feud Intensifies
The escalating conflict between Trump and Musk reached a boiling point, with Musk publicly criticizing a tax law supported by the president for contributing to the US's skyrocketing national debt. On a Thursday gathering, Trump branded Musk as "crazy," and hinted at the possibility of withdrawing government contracts from his companies.
Musk heads not one, but two influential companies – SpaceX and electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla. His combative attitude and stark demeanor have earned him many adversaries, particularly among Trump's Republicans who recently criticized his Strategic Cuts initiative.
Jeffrey Epstein's Suicide: Feds Release Prison Cell Video
In an afternoon tweetstorm, Musk also targeted Trump over their past association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who passed away under mysterious circumstances in a New York prison cell in 2019. Musk claimed that Trump appears in the "Epstein files," and that this is the real reason why these documents have not been disclosed to the public yet.
Epstein was a prominent investor known for his connections to high-ranking personalities worldwide. He is accused of sexually abusing underage girls and young women for years and coercing them into prostitution. Both Trump and Epstein were acquaintances.
According to the "New York Times," Musk was also involved with Epstein and his associates. Musk was thus captured in a 2014 photograph with Ghislaine Maxwell, a former partner of Epstein and his long-time associate, who was convicted in 2021 for her role in Epstein's sex trafficking ring.
Source: ntv.de, mau/AFP/dpa
- SpaceX
- ISS
- NASA
- Donald Trump
- Elon Musk
- Jeffrey Epstein
- Jeff Bezos
- Boeing
- Jared Isaacman
I'm not going to be a big fan of the idea of a space-and-astronomy endeavor if it's controlled by politics, as the ongoing feud between Elon Musk and Donald Trump has shown. The role of science and technology in space exploration, such as the NASA's International Space Station (ISS), cannot be understated, but the recent events have raised concerns about their influence on the industry. Elon Musk's SpaceX, which plays a crucial role in NASA's space travel, has been a central figure in this controversy, with Musk publicly criticizing the president's policies and Trump threatening to withdraw government contracts.
