President Donald Trump offered to pay the astronauts who were stranded in space out of his “own pocket” after learning they do not receive overtime pay.
During a press conference in the Oval Office Friday, Fox News’s Peter Doocy noted that the astronauts received approximately just $1,430 for the extra nine months they stayed in space, thanks to a measly $5 a day per diem.
“They got $5 a day per diem for 286 days. That is $1,430 in extra pay. Is there anything the administration can do to… make them whole?” Doocy asked Trump.
“Well, nobody’s ever mentioned this to me,” the president responded. “If I have to, I’ll pay it out of my own pocket, okay? I’ll get it for ’em. I’ll take care of it. I like that. I think that’s good. I’ll pay it right out of my–is that all? That’s not a lot for what they had to go through.”
Trump then praised SpaceX CEO Elon Musk for helping to bring the astronauts safely back to Earth from the International Space Station:
And I want to thank Elon Musk, by the way, because think if we don’t have him. You know, there’s only so long — even though they’re in the capsule up there — the body starts to deteriorate after nine or ten months and gets really bad after fourteen, fifteen months, with the bones and the blood… And if we don’t have Elon, they could be up there a long time. Who else is going to get them? And I just want to thank him.
Trump emphasized that Musk has endured “a lot” as Tesla properties have been arson targets:
He’s going through a lot, what they’re doing to him, and these people are going to be caught… and they’re going to be prosecuted. And from what they tell me, I see this just by watching your programs and reading the news, but from what they tell me, they can get 20 years in jail, and they’ll get it, I’ll tell you. There’s going to be no leniency and there’ll be no pardons, I can tell you that right now.
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced charges Thursday against three individuals who are alleged to be behind arsons or attempted arsons of Tesla properties around the country.
“The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended,” Bondi said in a press release. “Let this be a warning: if you join this wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put you behind bars.”
