Elon Musk took to X this week to publicly criticize Donald Trump’s administration over reports that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is positioning himself to lead NASA under the Department of Transportation.
Musk’s comments followed an Oct. 20 Wall Street Journal report alleging Duffy’s interest in the post. “Should someone whose biggest claim to fame is climbing trees be running America’s space program?” Musk wrote, referencing Duffy’s background as a professional lumberjack and former speed-climbing champion.
He included a tongue-in-cheek poll with the options “Noo, he need moar brainz!” and “Yezz, chimps skillz rūl!” — the former winning with 67% of the vote.
Over the next two days, the SpaceX CEO escalated his criticism, posting, “The person responsible for America’s space program can’t have a 2-digit IQ,” and “Sean Dummy is trying to kill NASA!”
Duffy has been acting NASA administrator since Trump’s previous nominee, Karen Petro, stepped down in July to become director of the Kennedy Space Center.
Since his brief stint as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) during the early months of Trump’s second term, Musk has backed his fellow billionaire and friend Jared Isaacman to take the top NASA job.
Trump originally nominated Isaacman earlier this year but abruptly withdrew the nomination in late May — a move widely seen as connected to his growing rift with Musk over criticism of the president’s “Big Beautiful” budget bill.
During a June 4 appearance on The All-In Podcast, Isaacman recalled learning of the decision the same day Trump and Musk held their final joint press conference. “I was in D.C. for the last six months getting ready,” he said. “There were some people that had axes to grind. And I was a good, visible target.”
Although Isaacman remains a frontrunner for the position, Musk has avoided a full endorsement. “At this point, I am not advocating any particular candidate for NASA Administrator,” he wrote in a later post. “I am just desperate for someone with a 3-digit IQ.”
He added, “Having a NASA Administrator who knows literally ZERO about rockets & spacecraft undermines the American space program and endangers our astronauts.”
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Musk left his DOGE post when his government contract expired on May 30. Though initially expected to continue as an adviser, his public attacks on Trump’s spending bill appeared to mark a clean break.
Days later, he vented his frustrations on X: “I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong.”
While Musk later toned down some of his remarks, insiders at the time said his relationship with the Trump White House had been permanently strained. “Trump doesn’t forget,” one person close to the situation noted. “Despite Elon’s apology, that relationship will never be the same.”
