President Donald Trump had a lighthearted moment with reporters in the Oval Office as he spoke about plans to bring two stranded American astronauts home from the International Space Station later this month, even wondering if he should go himself.
Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams arrived at the ISS on June 6 for what was supposed to be an 8-day stay. Unfortunately, the Boeing Starliner crew capsule they were testing developed mechanical problems, so NASA made the decision to bring it back unmanned.
On Tuesday, Wilmore appeared to confirm reports that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had offered at the time to send a ship up to bring them home, but then-President Joe Biden would not allow it for political reasons. Musk had become a supporter of Trump and a critic of the Biden administration by this point in the presidential campaign.
NEW: Astronaut says Elon Musk is “absolutely factual” after a WaPo reporter asked him about how Musk said his rescue efforts were denied for political reasons.
Musk was condemned by the media for making the comment but it appears the astronauts agree.
Reporter: “Elon Musk has… pic.twitter.com/Qeb8sF8gnT
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 6, 2025
Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy asked Trump on Thursday if he had a message for the stranded astronauts.
“We love you and we’re coming up to get you, and you shouldn’t have been up there so long. The most incompetent President in our history has allowed that to happen to you,” he responded.
The president added with a smile, “I hope they like each other. Maybe they’ll love each other. I don’t know.”
DOOCY: What is your message to the astronauts stuck in space?
POTUS: “We love you and we’re coming up to get you and you shouldn’t have been up there so long. The most incompetent President in our history has allowed that to happen to you.” pic.twitter.com/9Lwxeal6ZX
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 6, 2025
Are you glad Trump has rotated out some of the worst media organizations and brought in many new media outlets?
“We have two people up there that Biden and Kamala [Harris] left up there, and [Musk] knows it very well,” Trump said.
He recounted that he asked Musk if he was equipped to go get them, which the SpaceX chief said he was.
“He’s got a starship, and they’re preparing it right now,” Trump said.
“Elon is going to go up and get them. Should I go on that journey just to be on the ship when we stop? What do you think?” the president asked Doocy.
“If that’s an option, yes,” Doocy responded.
“I should do it,” Trump said with a laugh. “That’s terrible. I thought he liked me.”
Another reporter then offered that she thought Trump should stay on Earth.
“She likes me better,” Trump said.
He promised regarding the astronauts, “When they come back, I’ll greet them. How about that?”
Fox News reported that SpaceX is slated to launch on Wednesday to pick up Wilmore and Williams. They will return home after a several-day ISS handover period.
Last month, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that her office would be deciding which reporters cover the president in limited space settings like the Oval Office and Air Force One.
Previously, the White House Correspondents’ Association selected the press pool.
The WHCA represents the traditional media outlets that cover the White House, and they mostly tend to have a leftward bias.
Leavitt noted under the new policy that five major television networks — Fox News, CNN, ABC, NBC, and CBS — will continue to rotate through the pool, so there is always someone to capture video of what happens during a limited-space event. But she added there will be new print and radio outlets added into the mix.
She explained to Fox News host Lawrence Jones, “For decades, you have a group of journalists based here in Washington D.C. who dictate which reporters go into the most intimate spaces of the American presidency…. And that system hasn’t changed since the early 1900s.”
“The media today in 2025 looks a heck of a lot different than when the White House Correspondents’ Association was formed,” Leavitt continued.
“So moving forward we’re going to expand the pool’s access to the president to non-traditional journalists. Legacy media will still have a seat, just like they still have a seat in our briefing room. But we’re going to bring in new voices into the fold.”
.@karolineleavitt: “For decades, you have a group of journalists based here in Washington D.C. who dictate which reporters go into the most intimate spaces of the American presidency… Moving forward we’re going to expand the pool’s access.. We’re going to bring in new voices.” pic.twitter.com/JD0WR5NGX9
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) February 26, 2025
The atmosphere in the Oval Office Thursday seemed to reflect a new mix of journalists, not just those looking to land a gotcha question.
It’s been a pretty heavy few years, so a little levity from time-to-time is a welcome change.
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