Trump Vows To 'Plant Stars And Stripes' On Planet Mars, Gets Thumbs Up From Elon Musk | WATCH

US President Donald Trump pledged on Monday that the world's largest economy would once again view itself as "a growing nation" with ambitions to expand its territory, announcing plans to plant the American flag on Mars.

Shortly after the declaration, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk was seen raising his hands in celebration and enthusiastically giving a thumbs up, capturing attention during Trump's inaugural address at the US Capitol.

Photo Credit: https://x.com/SawyerMerritt

"We will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars," Trump declared during his inauguration speech in Washington.

Elon Musk, whose company SpaceX is leading advancements in space exploration, has long advocated for the importance of transforming humanity into a multi-planetary species.

Elon Musk’s reaction to Trump saying today: “We will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars by launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.” pic.twitter.com/XMLQC2OTuu

— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) January 20, 2025

The Trump-Musk partnership during the 47th US presidency is expected to significantly influence the nation's space policy, with potential major revisions to NASA's Artemis program, which could benefit SpaceX, Musk's private space venture.

The Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the Moon as a stepping stone to Mars, is likely to focus more directly on missions to the Red Planet under Trump's leadership.

In addition to his vision for space exploration, Trump announced several executive orders during his inaugural speech, designed to rapidly reshape the government and overturn policies from Joe Biden's administration.

The planned executive actions include measures to tighten border security, increase fossil fuel production, and abolish diversity and inclusion initiatives within federal agencies.