Former U.S. President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on Tuesday, saying that he had asked Elon Musk and SpaceX to rescue two astronauts who, according to him, were “virtually abandoned in space” by the Biden administration.
“I have just asked Elon Musk and @SpaceX to ‘go get’ the 2 brave astronauts who have been virtually abandoned in space by the Biden Administration,” Trump wrote. “They have been waiting for many months on @Space Station. Elon will soon be on his way. Hopefully, all will be safe. Good luck, Elon!!!”
Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore have been on the International Space Station (ISS) for more than six months. They were originally supposed to return in June, but technical issues with their Boeing Starliner spacecraft delayed their trip back to Earth.
NASA postpones astronauts' return again
Williams and Wilmore travelled to the ISS as part of Boeing’s space mission. The mission initially faced several launch delays due to technical issues like thruster failures and helium leaks. NASA decided to leave the astronauts at the ISS for safety reasons.
NASA had planned for the two astronauts to return in February 2025. However, their return using a SpaceX craft was pushed back further to late March.
“NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 now is targeting no earlier than late March 2025 to launch four crew members to the International Space Station,” NASA said in a December report.
Elon Musk responds to Trump’s request
Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, has shown strong support for Trump, backing him in his 2024 presidential campaign and attending his rallies. On Tuesday evening, he responded to Trump’s request on the social media platform X.
“The @POTUS has asked @SpaceX to bring home the 2 astronauts stranded on the @Space_Station as soon as possible. We will do so. Terrible that the Biden administration left them there so long,” Musk wrote.
The Hill has reached out to SpaceX and former President Biden for comments on the situation.