The escalating feud between former President Donald Trump and Elon Musk took a sharp turn after Trump publicly called for the termination of Musk’s government subsidies and contracts, prompting Musk to announce the immediate decommissioning of SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft.
“In light of the President’s statement about cancellation of my government contracts, @SpaceX will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately,” Musk wrote.
Trump on Truth Social said: “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
Dragon Spacecraft’s crucial role
The Dragon capsule is currently the only US vehicle capable of ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station (ISS). It has been critical to NASA’s operations, especially after a Dragon capsule successfully brought NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams back to Earth in March, following their extended stay aboard the ISS due to issues with Boeing’s Starliner capsule.
Escalating Musk-Trump fallout
The announcement comes amid a widening public spat between Musk and Trump, which intensified after Musk criticised Trump’s tax bill.