Elon Musk Says, 'If Lobbying And Lawyers Could Get You To Orbit, Bezos Would Be On Pluto Right Now'

Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, has taken a swipe at Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and the Blue Origin space program, stating that Bezos should focus more on rocket development and less on lobbying the US Government for contracts.

The jibe came not long after Musk was awarded a lucrative contract with NASA, related to the Artemis 2024 mission which hopes to return man to the Moon, a contract that Bezos had been trying to obtain for his own company.

Bezos has filed a 50-page-report with NASA complaining about SpaceX being awarded the contract, in which he claims NASA moved the goalposts at the last minute.

On Twitter, Musk said:

"If lobbying and lawyers could get u to orbit, Bezos would be on Pluto rn [right now]."

If lobbying & lawyers could get u to orbit, Bezos would be on Pluto rn

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2021

The pair, who have competed in years to be the world's richest person, have come to verbal blows on several occasions before. Musk himself is notorious for making controversial statements both online and offline, leading some to describe him as an 'internet troll'. Previous statements include falsely labelling a rescuer in Thailand a pedophile (Musk was later exonerated by a court), and supporting right-wing coups against democratically elected governments in Latin America.

In 2015, when Bezos' Blue Origin flight took place, Musk hit back, saying:

"SpaceX Grasshopped rocket did six suborbital flights three years ago and is still around."

Bezos said regarding his company's bid for the 2024 Artemis mission:

"I am honoured to offer these contributions and am grateful to be in a financial position to be able to do so."

When the bid was rejected, Musk retorted:

"Just want to say thanks to those in government who fight hard for the right thing to happen, despite extreme pressure to do otherwise. Therein lies the core goodness of the American state."

Last month Bezos and other crew members made a 4-minute flight into space aboard his own rocket. While many were supportive of the mission, others criticised him for spending $5 billion on something that was of no scientific merit, particularly when so many are struggling as a result of the pandemic.

[h/t: Indpendent]