Thursday’s explosion of a SpaceX rocket at Cape Canaveral is a reminder of just how easily billions of dollars in government subsidies can go up in flames.
While the media reported the event as a mere setback for billionaire SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and “a major blow” to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s plans for expanding internet services in Africa, it is clear that the biggest looser is the American taxpayer.
Musk’s SpaceX, together with his other high-profile ventures like Tesla Motors and SolarCity are supported heavily by a litany of government subsidies, having received nearly $5 billion in taxpayer dollars.
Although Musk’s ventures are pushing the boundaries of automotive and space technology, their uncertain success or failure is hinged to a complex maze of corporate welfare and cronyism in the form of grants, subsidies and tax cuts that can be traced to backroom deals and costly regulations like the Obama administration’s carbon mandates.
As the smoke dissipates around Cape Canaveral, all that’s left behind are the ashes of hard-earned American dollars, and one demanding question; should taxpayers really be footing the bill for a billionaire’s pet projects?
