How the U.S. became highly reliant on Elon Musk for access to space

SpaceX is best known for its high-profile crewed missions to the International Space Station and its ambitious Starship program. But the U.S. has become increasingly reliant on the company for critical and sometimes secret space operations. This relationship is now jeopardized by the escalating feud between SpaceX founder Elon Musk and President Trump.

The ongoing dispute highlights the deep interdependence between the U.S. government and SpaceX. Trump has threatened to cut SpaceX's federal contracts. Musk fired back by saying that his company would decommission its Dragon capsule, which is currently America's only means of transportation to the space station. He later deleted the original tweet.

During the Obama administration, Lori Garver served as deputy administrator of NASA and she