Trump seeking alternative to Musk's SpaceX
Once close allies during the 2024 election campaign, Trump and Musk have had a dramatic falling out in recent months. The rift began over Trump's $5 trillion 'big, beautiful' budget bill, which Musk publicly opposed. In response, Trump accused Musk of benefiting excessively from federal subsidies and threatened to strip SpaceX of its government contracts.
SpaceX has played a central role in US defense communications through its Starlink and Starshield satellite systems, and was expected to build key components of the Golden Dome. Reuters reported in April that the company was a frontrunner for the project, alongside Palantir and Anduril.
However, Trump is apparently following through on his threat to take away Musk's contracts, according to the latest Reuters report. Officials at the Pentagon and White House are now allegedly courting other companies to reduce reliance on Musk's firm.
Amazon's Project Kuiper has reportedly been approached by the administration, despite having launched only a fraction of its planned satellite constellation. Other firms under consideration include Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, L3Harris, and smaller rocket startups such as Rocket Lab and Stoke Space.
Despite the shift, Reuters notes that SpaceX may still handle certain parts of the $175 billion program, especially satellite launches, given its record of more than 9,000 Starlink deployments and vast procurement experience.
The breakdown in relations between the two men continued last month when Trump proposed that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk formerly led, should investigate his government subsidies.
'Without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa,' Trump wrote on Truth Social, claiming the US could 'save a fortune' by cutting ties with his companies.
Musk responded by warning that the president's spending plan would 'bankrupt the country' and pledged to launch a new political movement, the America Party, to disrupt the Democrat-Republican 'uniparty' in Congress.
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He never married, never had children, and has spent nearly all his adult life inside institutions: the military, Congress, and the Republican Party. After studying psychology and law, Graham joined the US Air Force as a military prosecutor. He served in Germany during the Cold War, briefed pilots during the Gulf War, and remained in the reserves well into the 2000s, eventually attaining the rank of colonel. In 2007, he flew to Iraq; in 2009, to Afghanistan. Even as a senator, he sought out proximity to war. Graham's private life has long attracted speculation. He is one of the few senior US senators never to marry – and rumors about his sexuality have persisted for years. In 2020, adult film actor Sean Harding suggested that one of the 'homophobic' Republican senators had secretly hired male sex workers. The nickname 'Lady G' began circulating on social media. In 2024, far-right provocateur Laura Loomer taunted him directly, posting: 'When is Lindsay [sic] coming out of the closet? We all know you're gay, Lindsey. And that's okay. It's 2024. There's nothing wrong with gay people.' Graham, as always, declined to comment. His political rise was fast. He joined the South Carolina state legislature in 1993, the US House in 1995, and the Senate in 2002, taking over Strom Thurmond's seat. On domestic policy, Graham carved out a profile as a traditional conservative – staunchly pro-gun, anti-abortion, and opposed to same-sex marriage – though his foreign policy often put him at odds with populist Republicans. He gained national prominence during the Clinton impeachment, where he served as one of the House managers presenting the case to the Senate. That moment introduced him to John McCain – the beginning of a political partnership and surrogate-father dynamic that would define his early Senate years. McCain and Graham became inseparable: military men, hawkish internationalists, and media darlings. 'Some call Graham a lapdog. 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