Elon Musk Mocks ‘Sleeping’ Joe Biden For Silence On SpaceX
Elon Musk took a shot at “Sleepy” Joe Biden after the reclusive president failed to acknowledge SpaceX’s latest mission, a three-day, all civilian orbit of Earth.
A Twitter follower of Musk’s raised the question after the return of the shuttle last Saturday evening.
“The President of the United States has refused to even acknowledge the 4 newest American astronauts who helped raise hundreds of millions of dollars for St. Jude. What’s your theory on why that is?”
“He’s still sleeping,” Musk deadpanned.
The mission, dubbed “Inspiration4,” marked the first time that an all civilian crew has ever made it to Earth’s orbit in the history of space travel. While the President’s office can’t be expected to weigh in on every civilian feat, such a bold mission as Musk’s would have likely made the cut for every administration before Biden’s, given the remarkable nature of space travel.
The crew — Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Chris Sembroski and Dr. Sian Proctor — spent three days circling the planet at an altitude of more than 335 miles. For comparison, the International Space Station orbits at around 260 miles from Earth’s surface.
Issacmen, a jet pilot and billionaire, reportedly paid $200 million for the privilege. He also donated the other two seats via a sweepstakes that raised $113 million for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospitals. Musk donated $50 million himself, too.
Top officials from The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, including NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, congratulated those involved in the mission upon their return to Earth. Even SpaceX’s commercial rivals, like Boeing and Blue Origin, managed to eke out a public congratulations.
This isn’t the first time Musk has publicly dueled with the Biden administration. Tesla was reportedly excluded from an electric car summit at the White house last month, even though the company has distinguished itself as the premier electric car brand thus far in the market.