They’ve been floating in space since June—just over nine months. The two American astronauts were stranded on the International Space Station when the Boeing Starliner craft, which took them into orbit, experienced what NASA described as “multiple issues” and was returned to Earth empty.
Since then, it’s been unclear when and if we could get them back. In February, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk dropped a bombshell allegation: he had offered the Biden administration assistance in saving the astronauts, but Biden declined for “political reasons.”
On Tuesday, one of the astronauts said that Musk’s accusation was absolutely true:
One of the NASA astronauts trapped on the International Space Station said he believes Elon Musk’s claim that the Biden administration rejected the SpaceX CEO’s offer to help bring the team home.
Barry “Butch” Wilmore made the comment Tuesday during an in-orbit press conference with fellow castaway Sunita Williams nine months after their Boeing Starliner capsule malfunctioned and left the pair stuck on the ISS.
One questioner asked about Musk’s recent claim that former President Joe Biden had intentionally stalled their rescue for “political reasons.”
In an earlier question, Wilmore denied that politics had anything to do with the team’s delayed departure, but he seemed to shift his stance when answering the later question.
“I can only say that Mr. Musk, what he says, is absolutely factual … I believe him,” he said.
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.pic.twitter.com/pMJifnsua3
— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) March 6, 2025
Related: Elon Musk: POTUS Wants SpaceX to Bring Home Stranded Astronauts
SpaceX Files Blistering Lawsuit Against California Coastal Commission Alleging Political Retaliation
Musk said the former president didn’t want Trump to get any credit, so he chose to risk the lives of the astronauts out of petty politics:
Musk… told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that working with him to bring the astronauts back would have made Trump “look good” and that Biden “didn’t want the publicity” so close to the presidential election.
If that’s true, that’s a disgusting look for the luckily defeated former president.
Elon and Trump have framed this as a political issue, claiming that the Biden administration refused to allow SpaceX to rescue these astronauts sooner because they didn’t want to give good publicity to a Trump ally before the election. pic.twitter.com/F8wFLYm9Zz
— erin (@realizingerin) March 4, 2025
Meanwhile, although astronaut Wilmore said he did not have any inside information on what went on between Biden and Musk, he appreciated Trump and Elon for their leadership:
Wilmore also voiced his support for both the new president and the world’s richest man.
“All of us have the utmost respect for Mr. Musk, and obviously, respect and admiration for our president of the United States, Donald Trump. We appreciate them. We appreciate all that they do for us, for human space flight, for our nation,” Williams said.
Assuming Musk’s accusation is true—and it sounds authentic after what we saw through four long years of the craven Biden administration—it’s yet another indication that Joe cared about his political life above anything else—including, as we reported, his own family.
He has not been missed.
We should be thrilled each and every day that Joe Biden is back home on the beach in Delaware and we’ve got a real leader in charge.
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