Trump’s $6 Billion NASA Funding Cut Jeopardizes Race To Moon Against China

Jalopnik ^ | RYAN ERIK KING MAY 9, 2025 12:25 PM EST Read More: https://www.jalopnik.com/1855263/trump-6-billi | RYAN ERIK KING MAY 9, 2025 12:25 PM EST Read More: https://www.jalopnik.com/1855263/trump-6-billi

[ansel12]

This is old hat to the old America.

[RoosterRedux]

The headline is misleading.

Trump’s budget cuts target bloated legacy systems like SLS and Orion—not the Moon mission itself.

In fact, funding for human spaceflight is up, signaling a strategic shift toward private partners like SpaceX. Musk has already proven that commercial operations can be faster and more cost-effective. By reallocating resources through fixed-price contracts, NASA can leverage proven private-sector capabilities instead of relying on slower, costlier government-built systems.

This is a strategic reset, not a retreat.

[RoosterRedux]

Well said.

[rlmorel]

That is exactly how I see it.

I like that Elon Musk is thinking of how to get to Mars, not the moon. Been there, done that.

[rlmorel]

I thought it was shaped like a clown-head.

[nickcarraway]

Thanks.

[from occupied ga]

Sending people to the moon is a waste of resources. Sending them to Mars is total insanity. There isn’t anything on Mars that’s worth the cost of sending robots, unless you look at Mars missions as welfare for engineers. But the cost of sending people to do what robots already do better is crazy

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Yeah, I’m pretty sure if getting to the Moon is our national goal, today’s politicized DEI NASA is not the agency to get us there. Contract it to SpaceX.

[rlmorel]

And of course, there is this:

LINK: Haynes Baked Beans Astronaut Ad

[Myrddin]

So, Lynyrd Skynyrd never actually existed?

That's a non-sequitur

[SmokingJoe]

“As always, Musk claimed he could do it faster and cheaper”

He always has.
Look at Dragon to Space Station, which cost just over half what Boeing was charging, and Musk delivered 4 years ago. Boeing has yet to deliver a working Starliner to and back Starliner

[nickcarraway]

So, South Africa would beat the U.S.?

[Bryan24]

If you want to fix what is wrong at NASA, start by barring Boeing from any space related contracts. Boeing is a financial “Black Hole”. Money goes in and nothing comes out.

[DAC21]

Been there done that, nice try Jalopnik. Turd

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Lol…both hilarious!

[hal ogen]

How dare NASA give up their “muslum outreach”!!!

[odawg]

“It’s also no secret that the government-gutting CEO detests the effort to return to the Moon and the Artemis program.”

Now, am I supposed to figure how who he is referring to? Trump? NASA CEO? Metaphorical person?

My high school English teacher would kick his ass.

[P-Marlowe]

Did we or did we not send people to the moon in 1969?

[MotorCityBuck]

Elon has it covered.
Next.

[RoosterRedux]

The South Africa of Musk is now merged with Trump.

The South Africa of Mandela is now merged with the Democratic Party.