Considering that we’re still in the midst of a global pandemic, most of us aren’t taking any trips right now. Depending where you live, maybe you can eat outside at a restaurant or go to the mall, but even that sounds nerve-wracking at the moment. But you know who doesn’t have any issue with non-essential travel right now? Ding ding ding! It’s the Trumps!
Wednesday marked the scheduled launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket, a joint venture between Elon Musk’s company and NASA. (Not to be confused with the launch of X Æ A-12, which happened a few weeks ago.) It was to be the first astronaut launch from US soil in nearly a decade, so it’s kind of a big deal. And naturally, Donald Trump didn’t let a little pandemic get in the way of some historic rocket thing. He traveled down to the Kennedy Space Center, along with Melania, Mike Pence, Ivanka and Jared, and their kids.
Under normal circumstances, this wouldn’t seem strange, but earlier this month, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine literally begged people to watch the launch from home. During a remote press conferenc, Bridenstine said that in an effort to “keep everybody safe,” “we’re asking people not to travel to the Kennedy Space Center.” But we all know rules don’t apply to Ivanka and Jared, so they traveled anyway. In photos from their visit, Ivanka and the kids are wearing masks, but Jared apparently missed the whole *coronavirus* memo.
Luckily, Jared doesn’t spread viruses like humans do. pic.twitter.com/f2zpA6xoad
— Schooley (@Rschooley) May 27, 2020
But what makes this whole thing especially ridiculous? The rocket launch didn’t even happen! Due to inclement weather, the planned launch was canceled just 17 minutes in advance, and rescheduled to next week. So after all that unnecessary risk, Ivanka didn’t even get to see anything cool. She seemed pretty bummed, and tweeted this afterward:
The launch of the SpaceX Crew Dragon to the ISS was scrubbed 17 minutes before the scheduled launch due to inclement weather.
Leaving Kennedy Space Center now … disappointing, but safety first!
Launch will be rescheduled! 🇺🇸
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) May 27, 2020
Cute that she’s focused on safety when it comes to the rocket, but she apparently has no regard for the countless people that could potentially be harmed by her careless traveling. Of course, it’s not the first time that Ivanka has traveled during these socially distant times, but at least last time was for a religious holiday. Flying hundreds of miles to see a spaceship launch seems kind of dumb in the first place, and it’s certainly not worth the risk right now.
The new launch date is set for next Monday, and President Trump has already confirmed he’ll return to the Kennedy Space Center to see it in person. So kind of him to find a break in his golf schedule to make another unnecessary trip! It’s unclear whether Ivanka and her fam will be returning next week, but it’s clear she’s not doing much else right now, so my money is on yes.
Images: a katz / Shutterstock.comrschooley, ivankatrump / Twitter
