Musk launches SpaceX Starship rocket with Trump by his side | Al Jazeera News

Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, launched the sixth test of his SpaceX rocket, under the eyes of the President-elect of the United States, Donald Trump.

Trump and Musk traveled to Brownsville, Texas, on Tuesday to watch the launch of the giant Starship rocket at SpaceX's test site in nearby Boca Chica.

The rocket took off shortly after 5 p.m. (11 p.m. GMT), but SpaceX opted to abandon a planned attempt to catch the rocket's first-stage booster using the chopstick technique, instead allowing it to fall into the ocean .

Starship's final test flight in October made headlines after the Super Heavy booster made a stunning return to the launch site where it was captured in mid-flight by a pair of attached giant mechanical wand arms at the SpaceX launch tower.

Ship taking off! pic.twitter.com/rSLQ2DDy63

SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 19, 2024

Trump's presence is part of a growing connection with Musk, owner of SpaceX, electric car maker Tesla and social media platform get the former president re-elected.

Trump was to be joined by his son Donald Jr. and Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

Starship, the largest rocket ever built, is designed to be a reusable vehicle to transport goods and people beyond Earth.

Constant presence of musks

Trump's presence at the launch is another example of Musk's growing role in Trump's orbit, according to a CNN report.

Since Trump won the November 5 US presidential election, Musk has been a constant presence at the president-elect's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida.

He advised Trump on candidates for the new administration and participated in the president-elect's phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Musk also accompanied Trump last Wednesday for a meeting with House Republicans in Washington, D.C., and joined him Saturday for the Ultimate Fighting Championship at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Trump recently rewarded Musk for his political support by appointing him, alongside Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, to advise the new Department of Government Effectiveness with a mission to reduce government spending.

“Most importantly, we will eliminate the massive waste and fraud that exists throughout our $6.5 trillion annual government spending,” Trump said in a statement regarding the nomination, one of his first after his victory in the elections.

Musk's companies could personally benefit from his close ties to Trump. SpaceX, which has among its goals to eventually start a colony on Mars, has billions of dollars in government contracts. The billionaire has also battled with US federal regulators over safety concerns related to autonomous driving, available in his Tesla electric vehicles.

Trump has the greatest possible respect for those who break the rules and get away with it, William Galston, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, told the Associated Press news agency.

Musk has demonstrated extraordinary achievements in this regard.

Not always friends

However, the two weren't always so close. Trump used to mock Musk in his campaign speeches and Musk once said it was time for Trump to hang up his hat and sail off into the sunset because he was too old to be president.

But that changed after Trump survived an assassination attempt before the election. Musk supported Trump and became a central figure in the Republican election campaign.

Trump even began talking about Musk's space achievements during his campaign. He was intrigued when the Starship's reusable rocket booster returned to the launch tower and was caught by mechanical arms.

Did you see how that idiot landed today? » Trump asked the crowd at a political rally after that Starship test.

So far, there is no sign that the friendship formed during the elections is about to cool down.

Last week, Musk was the guest of honor at a black-tie event at Mar-a-Lago.

Trump, in his remarks that evening, said Musk's IQ was about as high as it could be and praised him as a really good guy.

Musk was then invited to address the crowd.

The public gave us a mandate that couldn't be clearer, Musk said of the election results, sounding more like that of Trump's running mate than that of a crony.

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