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Outrage after Elon Musk's SpaceX awarded $38 million contract by Donald Trump [1]

['Katelyn Caralle', 'Senior U.S. Political Reporter In Washington']

Date: 2025-02-12 16:25:41+00:00

The federal government awarded Elon Musk's company a $38.85 million contract on Monday as the billionaire works to slash other contracts.

Critics were not happy to find out that Space Exploration Technologies Corporation – otherwise known as SpaceX – got a multi-million-dollar NASA contract at the same time Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is slashing billions in other government contracts.

'You'll never believe who is still getting new government contracts while all the contracts at the Department of Education and USAID and other agencies are being nuked from orbit,' attorney and researcher Will Stancil wrote on X.

He received the tip about the contract from a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employee and included an image of the contract award information.

Speaking with reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Musk insisted there is no conflict of interest if his companies receive government contracts from the same agencies where he is looking to conduct cuts.

'You have to look at the individual contract,' Musk said, adding that he isn't the individual filing contracts and it's his employees who are bidding to the government.

'If you see any contract where it was awarded to SpaceX and it wasn't by far the best value for the taxpayer, let me know – because every one of them was,' Musk challenged.

One X user wrote: 'This is a cartoonishly stupid answer.'

Elon Musk's SpaceX was awarded on Monday a $38.85 million contract from the federal government as he conducts massive cuts to other contracts

The contract was awarded by NASA, which is an independent agency that falls under the executive branch authority

'So let me get this straight, he wants contracts for cancer research cancelled but says let keep contracts for his company Spacex to do research,' Rep. Ilhan Omar posted.

'Greedy billionaire trying to ripoff the American people pretending to be altruistic is all I see.'

Another user also slammed the recent contract, noting: 'You notice how cutting back government contracts with Tesla and SpaceX isn't on the table or up for discussion? Elon Musk isn't your friend.'

Musk is CEO of SpaceX, Tesla and most recently in 2022 purchased the social media site Twitter and renamed it X.

The SpaceX contract was signed Monday, February 10 and gives Musk's company $38,858,978. It was awarded by NASA, which is an independent agency falling within the executive branch.

Meanwhile, last week Musk shut down USAID with the agreement of President Donald Trump.

Four top finance officials at FEMA were also fired this week after DOGE revealed that it paid $59 million last week to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants.

And the Trump administration this week terminated almost $1 billion – $900 million – worth of contracts at the Department of Education.

Other agencies and departments are bracing for impending cuts as Musk continues his merciless slashes to government programs in the name of saving taxpayer money and federal waste.

Donald Trump attended with 'first buddy' Elon Musk a test flight of SpaceX Starship's rocket on November 19, 2024 in Brownsville, Texas

Musk's company SpaceX is short for Space Exploration Technologies Corporation. Pictured on February 11, 2025 is a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch carrying 21 Starlink satellites out of Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida

One social media user noted that SpaceX 'had $19.8 billion in federal contracts since 2008.'

'F**k you Elon Musk,' they wrote of his hypocrisy in shutting down millions in contracts while accepting his own.

DOGE under the billionaire's leadership has taken on the task of examining the entirety of the federal government to identify areas where cuts can be made to reduce the spending burden and prevent what the administration sees as 'waste.'

Amid revelations of Musk's lucrative new SpaceX government contract, one X user listed the areas DOGE has cut so far, including closing USAID and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

They also claimed that Medicaid and the Education Department are 'under attack' and National Institutes of Health cancer funding is 'frozen.'

'But do you know who just got a NEW government contract for $38,858,978 literally today?' the user posed. 'SpaceX — owned by Elon Musk.'

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[1] Url: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14389487/elon-musk-spacex-awarded-millions-contract-donald-trump.html

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