According to Parabolic Arc’s Doug Messier in Musk Lobbies on Capitol Hill as Dragon Launch Slips Again, even as SpaceX sees its launch date for its next Falcon 9 mission slip, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is lobbying members of Congress hard to defeat the House 2010 NASA Reauthorization Act.
As LBJ once said, “It’s amazing how clear a man’s mind becomes when he’s about the be hung.”, and SpaceX would certainly face difficulties in pursuing human space flight without financial support and subsidies from NASA, subsidies that the House bill dilutes from billions for a few million per year. However, as Messier notes, it not clear how much Musk has helped his cause on Capital Hill. Given the funds that Musk has lately loaded on Democrats rather than Republicans, one thing is for certain–Musk has certainly put his money where his mouth is.
Only time will tell as to whether his lobbying will pay-off.