Trump to Pay Overtime to Two Astronauts out of His Own Pocket

On March 21, President Trump suggested paying overtime to two American astronauts who had spent nine months in space before returning to Earth. He mentioned that if necessary, he would personally cover the expenses.

During a press conference on Friday, a journalist informed Trump that NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams had not received overtime pay despite spending 286 days on the International Space Station. They were supposed to receive $5 in overtime pay per day, totaling $1430.

Trump responded, “No one has mentioned this to me. If necessary, I will take care of it. Okay, I’ll make sure they get it.”

“Is that all? This is not much considering what they have been through,” Trump added.

He then expressed gratitude to Elon Musk for using SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft to bring back these two astronauts who had been stranded in space for nine months. On Tuesday, the spacecraft successfully landed back on Earth.

“Think about it, what would have happened if we didn’t have him. You know, just in that amount of time – even if they were in the space capsule, after nine or ten months, the body will start deteriorating gradually,” Trump continued. “After fourteen or fifteen months, the bones, blood, and all those things that you’ve always reported are very good will become very bad. And if we didn’t have Elon, they might have stayed up there for a long time.”

A spokesperson from NASA confirmed in a statement to the Washington Examiner that these two astronauts only received an additional $5 for each day they spent in the spacecraft, without overtime pay.

The statement read, “When NASA astronauts arrive at the International Space Station, they receive a fixed salary for 40 hours per week. They do not receive overtime pay or holiday/weekend pay.”

“In space, NASA astronauts act as federal employees on official business travel orders, so their transportation, accommodation, and meals are provided. They also receive per diem amounts for working long-term (or temporary) and for every day they spend in space. Currently, per diem expenses for travel to any location are $5 per day,” the statement continued.