Musk's role in building Trump's 'Golden Dome' missile shield in doubt
The White House has tamped down talk of punishing Elon Musk's billions of government contracts now that he and president Trump have tamped down their epic feud. But a pivotal role floated for his SpaceX company to build Trump's $175 billion Golden Dome could now be under threat.
'No efforts have been made on that front, as far as I'm aware,' is how White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded when asked whether the White House was looking at nixing Musk's contracts. That came after the president wrote publicly about terminating his 'governmental subsidies and contracts' and warned of 'serious consequences' if Musk decided to financially support Democrats while he was railing against Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' for after forecasts showed it would tack trillions onto the national debt.
Now, the role for his company has come into question, Reuters reported, citing three people familiar with the project. It would be a major conceptual turnaround. abrupt turnaround from when Trump sat next to a graphic poster board showing a protective dome intended to shield the nation from incoming missiles.
The White House had been pushing consideration of a plan where Musk's rocket and satellite company – which ferries astronauts and payloads to the International Space Station – would be a key partner in the project. Also involved would be Palantir and drone maker Anduril. And in an indication of how personalities and affiliations could be playing in the ambitious projects, a 'new framework' is now under consideration which would scrap the need for Musk's network of orbiting satellites. It would focus on 'existing ground systems for missile defense instead,' according to the report.
It is unclear how this reworked system would counter the growing threat of hypersonic missiles, which can travel up to 10 times the speed of sound and change direction mid-flight. The Pentagon had been considering various plans, including some relying on multiple satellites and even space-based interceptors. A Defense official told Reuters that DOD 'has no announcements regarding future contracts associated with the Golden Dome effort.'
The White House said said the administration is 'committed to a rigorous review process for all bids and contracts. Trump announced his Golden Dome to much fanfare from the Oval Office. Republicans put a $25 billion line item for it in the House version of his 'big, beautiful' bill now making its way through the Senate.
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