Fact Check: Is Trump's claim he started Artemis program and NASA was closed in 2017 true?
WASHINGTON, DC: Following the success of the Artemis II mission to the moon, President Donald Trump said that he started the program during his first presidency and claimed that NASA was closed before he started the program, triggering speculations about the authenticity of the claim. Let us analyze the president's claims and fact-check their authenticity.
Claim: Donald Trump started the Artemis II program during his first presidency
While speaking to Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo on Wednesday, Trump claimed that he "started the Artemis program during his first presidency.”
Trump also said that before he started the Artemis program, "NASA was closed. It was totally closed.”
Trump made a similar statement in 2020. He also said something similar while talking to Artemis II astronauts while they were returning to Earth.
Shocking the crew, the President said, "I had a decision to make in my first term, and that decision was what are we going to do with NASA. Are we going to have it be revived, or are we going to close it down?" Again, indicating that NASA was not functioning when he took over as president in 2017.
Fact Check: Artemis II program was developed years before Donald Trump
The claims, however, are not true, as the Artemis program was being developed years before Trump ever entered the picture.
The preparations for the program started during the presidency of Barack Obama after he signed the NASA Authorization Act of 2010 in October that year, which talked about the immediate development of the SLS rocket and the Orion spacecraft. The Artemis II mission utilized both these components to send four humans to the Moon.
Also, NASA has never been closed ever since it was established in 1958. The organisation saw several space missions in the nearly 70 years it has been in existence.
NASA administrator credits Donald Trump for the success of the mission
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has credited Trump for helping make the historic Artemis II mission possible.
He said the expedition would not be possible “if it wasn't for President Trump”, a few days after four astronauts went on a flyby around the Moon to examine how the Orion spacecraft’s systems work in a deep space environment.
Speaking with Fox News Digital, Isaacman said, “I want to be incredibly clear, we would not be at this moment right now with Artemis II if it wasn't for President Trump. And we certainly would not have an achievable path now to get back to the lunar surface and build that enduring presence.”
