Trump Connects with Astronauts on International Space Station

During a visit to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, President Donald Trump engaged with American astronauts stationed aboard the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday. This call came after he honored the Artemis II crew with Congressional Space Medals of Honor and announced the establishment of a new U.S. Space Academy through an executive order.

While speaking to the astronauts via telephone, Trump commended them for their courage in being selected for the mission, even joking, “I wouldn’t do it. I will tell you right now—I hate to admit it—I would not want to do it.” He also encouraged the team to make their international colleagues feel welcomed, noting, “You have some very good friends on board.”

In the conversation, he mentioned his executive order for the NASA-led U.S. Space Academy, which aims to support both the Space Force and the civilian spaceflight industry, getting comparisons to prestigious institutions like West Point and the Naval Academy.

“I didn’t realize that when I announced it, nobody knew about it,” Trump shared, reminiscing about the excitement in the room when he unveiled the news.

Trump also took a moment to pass the phone to two of the astronauts’ spouses, allowing them to say a quick hello. “How could I let them stand here?” he remarked. “You know, they want to say hello and you want to say hello. Who needs Trump?”

He acknowledged the importance of NASA’s work, characterizing the members as “pioneers” and emphasizing their significant contributions, especially after previous administrations contemplated shutting the agency down.

“I just congratulate everybody. Be careful, be safe, and we love you all,” he concluded, expressing gratitude to the astronauts.

Flight engineer Anil Menon thanked Trump, reflecting on a recent spacewalk that allowed him to appreciate the engineering marvel of the ISS. Pilot Jack Hathaway humorously commented on his mustache, saying, “The mustache is a lot of fun. You definitely have to have one in space; it’s great in microgravity.”

The current crew on the ISS is Crew-12, which includes Commander Jessica Meir and Roscosmos mission specialist Andrey Fedyaev from Russia. They docked with the space station in February to take over from Crew-11, which had a medical evacuation mission.