‘Better you than me’: Trump commends astronauts for converting urine into drinking water
President Trump held a video conference with NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station on Monday, in part to congratulate Commander Peggy Whitson on her record-setting 535th day in space. Briefly, however, the conversation turned to a less dignified topic.
Trump, flanked by NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and his daughter Ivanka, was speaking from the Oval Office to Whitson and Colonel Jack Fischer about the conditions in space. Whitson gave an example of one of the ways in which astronauts are able to “close the life support system.”
“Water is such a precious resource up here that we also are cleaning up our urine and making it drinkable,” Whitson revealed. “And it’s really not as bad as it sounds.”
“Well, that’s good,” Trump, a self-proclaimed germophobe, responded. “I’m glad to hear that. Better you than me.”
The president seemed eager to abandon that particular subject, and was far more amenable to discussing sending humans to Mars. Told that it would be at least 2030 until such a mission would be feasible, Trump encouraged the astronauts to make haste.
“Well, we want to try and do it during my first term, or at worst during my second term,” Trump responded. “So we’ll have to speed that up a little, okay?”
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