Divorcing SpaceX Just Isn’t Possible Right Now
Trump and Musk have tamped down their feud in recognition of their rocket codependency.
Mutually assured frustration.
Photographer: Alex Wroblewski and Allison Robbert/AFP/Getty Images
The public spat between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, was unsettling given the power these two men wield and how their verbal tussle quickly escalated to issues that directly affect national security.
Trump floated the cancellation of all NASA and Department of Defense contracts with SpaceX, the space-launch and satellite-internet company Musk founded in 2002. Musk countered that he would withdraw the services of the Dragon space capsule, which is the only option now, except for resorting to the Russians, for ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station.