
Trump wants $1 billion for private-sector-led Mars exploration
The White House's 2026 budget proposal, released late on Friday, calls for allocating more than $1 billion for Mars exploration, including a new NASA initiative called the Commercial Mars Payload Services Program (CMPS).

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


United News of India
3 hours ago
- United News of India
Trump to announce new nominee to lead NASA
Washington, June 1 (UNI) U.S. President Donald Trump will soon announce a new nominee for the head of NASA, following his decision to withdraw former candidate Jared Isaacman, a close ally of Elon Musk, an official said. "After a thorough review of prior associations, I am hereby withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA," Trump wrote on his Truth Social site. "I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be Mission aligned, and put America First in Space." Late last year, Trump named Isaacman, a billionaire and private astronaut, as the nominee for NASA chief. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee approved his nomination in late April. Isaacman, a close associate of Musk and a major client of his company SpaceX, has purchased several private spaceflights from the company with hundreds of millions of dollars. UNI XC GNK


Economic Times
8 hours ago
- Economic Times
Trump-Musk ties strain as Isaacman ousted, Musk exits DOGE; NYT alleges drug use
AP (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) US president Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk appear to be drifting apart after a series of high-profile moves involving their close associates, political roles, and a damaging media report. Trump withdrew his pick of Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, while Musk exited his advisory role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Trump pulls Isaacman's NASA nomination Trump on Saturday said he was rescinding the nomination of Isaacman, a private astronaut and payments entrepreneur, to head the US space agency. 'After a thorough review of prior associations, I am hereby withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. 'I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be Mission aligned, and put America First in Space.' Isaacman, founder of Shift4 Payments, has worked closely with Musk's SpaceX and is known for leading the first all-civilian space mission. His ties to Musk reportedly played a key role in his nomination. The New York Times reported that Trump decided to pull back after learning that Isaacman had previously donated to well-known Democratic candidates. Responding to that report, the White House told AFP in an email, 'It is essential that the next leader of NASA is in complete alignment with president Trump's America First agenda. The Administrator of NASA will help lead humanity into space and execute president Trump's bold mission of planting the American flag on the planet Mars.' Musk leaves DOGE amid growing scrutiny Appointed by the president himself, Musk became in-charge of DOGE, a key project aimed at cutting government spending. His appointment made headlines and sparked strong reactions from both supporters and many expected Musk to step down, his exit came shortly after he publicly disagreed with parts of Trump's policy plans. That added to growing concerns about his role in his time at DOGE, Musk pushed for major spending cuts. Several government agencies were shut down and thousands of jobs were cut. These changes led to public protests and raised questions about whether it was appropriate for someone running large private companies to be involved in such Musk led DOGE, his companies, including Tesla, SpaceX and Neuralink, continued to operate, Tesla shares fell sharply, and protests erupted following DOGE's sweeping budget cuts and the closure of several federal agencies. Musk denies drug use claims by NYT Meanwhile, Musk hit back at a New York Times report that accused him of regular drug use during the 2024 campaign newspaper reported that Musk had used ketamine, ecstasy, and mushrooms and even developed bladder issues from frequent ketamine use. It said he carried a pill box and it was unclear whether he continued using drugs after joining the Trump administration in rejected the claims on Saturday. 'To be clear, I am NOT taking drugs. The New York Times was lying their ass off,' he wrote on added, 'I tried 'prescription' ketamine a few years ago and said so on X, so this is not even news. It helps for getting out of dark mental holes, but haven't taken it since then.'When asked by a reporter if he knew about Musk's alleged drug use, Trump replied, 'I wasn't. I think Elon is a fantastic guy.'


Time of India
8 hours ago
- Time of India
Trump-Musk ties strain as Isaacman ousted, Musk exits DOGE; NYT alleges drug use
Live Events US president Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk appear to be drifting apart after a series of high-profile moves involving their close associates, political roles, and a damaging media report. Trump withdrew his pick of Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, while Musk exited his advisory role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).Trump on Saturday said he was rescinding the nomination of Isaacman, a private astronaut and payments entrepreneur, to head the US space agency.'After a thorough review of prior associations, I am hereby withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. 'I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be Mission aligned, and put America First in Space .'Isaacman, founder of Shift4 Payments, has worked closely with Musk's SpaceX and is known for leading the first all-civilian space mission. His ties to Musk reportedly played a key role in his New York Times reported that Trump decided to pull back after learning that Isaacman had previously donated to well-known Democratic to that report, the White House told AFP in an email, 'It is essential that the next leader of NASA is in complete alignment with president Trump's America First agenda. The Administrator of NASA will help lead humanity into space and execute president Trump's bold mission of planting the American flag on the planet Mars.'Appointed by the president himself, Musk became in-charge of DOGE, a key project aimed at cutting government spending. His appointment made headlines and sparked strong reactions from both supporters and many expected Musk to step down, his exit came shortly after he publicly disagreed with parts of Trump's policy plans. That added to growing concerns about his role in his time at DOGE, Musk pushed for major spending cuts. Several government agencies were shut down and thousands of jobs were cut. These changes led to public protests and raised questions about whether it was appropriate for someone running large private companies to be involved in such Musk led DOGE, his companies, including Tesla, SpaceX and Neuralink, continued to operate, Tesla shares fell sharply, and protests erupted following DOGE's sweeping budget cuts and the closure of several federal Musk hit back at a New York Times report that accused him of regular drug use during the 2024 campaign newspaper reported that Musk had used ketamine, ecstasy, and mushrooms and even developed bladder issues from frequent ketamine use. It said he carried a pill box and it was unclear whether he continued using drugs after joining the Trump administration in rejected the claims on Saturday. 'To be clear, I am NOT taking drugs. The New York Times was lying their ass off,' he wrote on added, 'I tried 'prescription' ketamine a few years ago and said so on X, so this is not even news. It helps for getting out of dark mental holes, but haven't taken it since then.'When asked by a reporter if he knew about Musk's alleged drug use, Trump replied, 'I wasn't. I think Elon is a fantastic guy.'