Elon Musk is ripping into President Donald Trump‘s acting NASA Administrator, saying he’s not smart enough for the space agency’s top job.
The role is currently held by acting administrator Sean Duffy, who is also the transportation secretary.
‘The person responsible for America’s space program can’t have a two-digit IQ,’ Musk posted on X Tuesday afternoon, taking a shot at Duffy.
The mercurial entrepreneur was responding to a post calling for ‘someone else besides Duffy’ to lead NASA.
‘Sean Dummy is trying to kill NASA!’ Musk wrote in another post.
Musk’s latest salvo comes amid a brewing battle among the MAGA ranks about who should be confirmed as NASA’s administrator, according to a new Wall Street Journal report.
Duffy, who is working as the interim boss, is adamant that he keeps NASA’s top job, sources familiar with the matter are saying.
The transportation secretary has even floated rolling NASA under the department’s purview.
Former DOGE leader and SpaceX founder Elon Musk ripped NASA acting administrator and Treasury Secretary Sean Duffy’s intelligence in a Tuesday social media post
There have been reports that Trump may consider Jared Isaacman for NASA’s top job despite pulling Isaacman’s nomination for the role earlier this year
However, that puts him at odds with the Tesla and SpaceX founder, who is vying for his friend Jared Isaacman to get the job despite Trump withdrawing his nomination for Isaacman earlier this year.
Isaacman, a tech entrepreneur himself who piloted SpaceX’s first civilian crewed space mission, was considered for NASA’s top job earlier this year.
But after Trump and Musk feuded over the summer over the Jeffrey Epstein files, the administration withdrew its consideration of Isaacman.
The friend of Musk was first nominated to lead NASA in December 2024.
Now, Isaacman is attempting to get back in Trump’s orbit, and he has hired lobbyists and social media influencers to help him, the Journal reports.
Isaacman, meanwhile, denies that he has any ‘paid lobbyists or advocates’ working on his behalf.
‘Jared Isaacman for NASA Administrator!’ far-right influencer Laura Loomer posted on Tuesday afternoon.
Still, Isaacman and his team huddled over the weekend to assess his nomination. Adding to the urgency, some of Isaacman’s allies expected a decision on the top NASA job could come this week.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy currently also serves as acting NASA administrator
Commander Jared Isaacman of Polaris Dawn, a private human spaceflight mission, speaks at a press conference at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on August 19, 2024
The conversations directly between Duffy and Isaacman about renominating the tech entrepreneur were ‘contentious at times,’ the Journal reported.
Musk swung again at Duffy in another Tuesday post, noting how NASA won’t get to the moon faster than SpaceX.
It has been reported that Isaacman’s past support for Democratic politicians played a factor in his nomination being pulled earlier this year.
Duffy’s acting role atop the agency concludes at the end of the year.
The White House has said that any announcement about who will lead NASA will come directly from the president, though they did not give an update as to when that will happen.
