As part of its efforts to shore up NASA's flailing Artemis Program, the Trump administration earlier this year proposed two major changes to the agency's deep space exploration plans.
First, in the president's budget request for fiscal year 2026, the White House sought to terminate NASA's costly Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft after the Artemis III mission, the first human landing. And second, to focus on "direct-to-surface" exploration, the White House sought to cancel the Lunar Gateway, a small space station intended to orbit the Moon.
Essentially, for long-term sustainability, the White House decided it was best to use lower-cost, commercially available rockets and focus NASA's limited resources on surface activities. For example, the Gateway's $854 million budget in 2024 would be better spent in future years on a lunar base.
The president proposes, and Congress disposes
The US Congress, however, was not pleased by this.
As part of the "One Big Beautiful Bill" legislation this spring, a provision written by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) added $6.7 billion in funding to support additional flights of the SLS rocket and Orion, as well as to continue construction of the Gateway. And on Wednesday, at the beginning of a hearing to discuss NASA's Artemis Program and the agency's efforts to compete with China for influence at the Moon, Cruz warned the White House that it must not cancel the SLS rocket and Lunar Gateway.
"It would be folly to cut short these missions after much of the hardware has already been purchased and, in some cases, delivered with no commercial alternative readily available," Cruz said. "I look forward to working with the administration to ensure those funds are utilized in accordance with Congressional intent."