Jen Psaki called Donald Trump's Space Force, created in Dec. 2019, the 'plane of today' when a reporter asked her if the Biden administration was planning on keeping the branch of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Jen Psaki, 42, got the attention of many Twitter users when she addressed a question about Donald Trump‘s Space Force with a memorable answer during her White House press briefing on Feb. 2. The press secretary called the space service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, which was created by Congress during the Trump administration in Dec. 2019, “the plane of today” after a reporter asked if President Joe Biden and his administration were planning on “keeping” it.
It's the plane of today" — Psaki dismisses a question about if Biden plans to keep the Space Force
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 2, 2021
“Wow. Space Force. It’s the plane of today,” Psaki responded, seemingly comparing the question to an earlier one about the color scheme of Air Force One. “It is an interesting question. I am happy to check with our Space Force point of contact. I’m not sure who that is. I will find out and see if we have any update on that.”
She doesn’t seem condescending. She doesn’t dismiss it either, she said she would look into it. What more was she supposed to do? Build a rocket?
— Design Gooney (@DesignGooney) February 2, 2021
Once a clip of her answer made its way across Twitter, users started tweeting hilarious responses and GIFs about the interaction. “She doesn’t seem condescending. She doesn’t dismiss it either, she said she would look into it. What more was she supposed to do? Build a rocket?” one user tweeted along with a GIF of chef Gordon Ramsay taking off his glasses as the word “Seriously?” was captioned over him.
Space Force point of contact
— Marc The Snark (@MarcWitorsch) February 2, 2021
Another showed a clip of a Star Trek character with a shocked face and wrote, “Space Force point of contact.” A third shared a photo from the 1987 sci-fi/comedy film, Spaceballs, along with the caption, “Let’s eat and have shelter first, shall we?”
Space Force point of contact
— Marc The Snark (@MarcWitorsch) February 2, 2021
The tweets didn’t stop there either. One user wrote, “It is an interesting question” along with a picture of aliens looking down at the camera, while another pointed out, “She said “spaaace fooorce” with a laughing emoji and a skull emoji.
Let's eat and have shelter first, shall we?
— 🦺⚔NO SURRENDER ☠🔥 (@NEVERSTOP212) February 2, 2021
Although the tweets were amusing to many, not everyone was on board with Psaki’s comments. Shortly after she gave her answer about Space Force, some Republicans, including Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala) on the House Armed Services Committee, spoke out against her. “It’s concerning to see the Biden administration’s press secretary blatantly diminish an entire branch of our military as the punchline of a joke, which I’m sure China would find funny,” Rogers said, according to Politico.
“The Space Force was passed with near unanimous support in Congress, the same type of ‘unity’ President Biden is supposedly working towards,” he continued. “Jen Psaki needs to immediately apologize to the men and women of the Space Force for this disgraceful comment.”
Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.), who is a founding member of the House Space Force Caucus, also criticized the White House for Psaki’s comments. “This is just another example of the Biden administration not taking China seriously while demeaning the incredible work of Space Force personnel,” he said, the outlet further reported.
We look forward to the continuing work of Space Force and invite the members of the team to come visit us in the briefing room anytime to share an update on their important work.
— Jen Psaki (@PressSec) February 3, 2021
After the negative response, Psaki took to the press secretary Twitter account to share a tweet about the situation. “We look forward to the continuing work of Space Force and invite the members of the team to come visit us in the briefing room anytime to share an update on their important work,” her tweet read.
