‘Solid Head of Hair…’: US President Trump’s Unique Compliment for Stranded Indian-Origin Astronaut Sunita Williams- wna24

Washington: US President Donald Trump had a unique compliment for NASA’s Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams’ hair. In an Oval Office address, Trump spoke about the stranded astronauts, saying, “We’re coming up to get you.”

The 78-year-old President proposed personally launching a rescue mission to bring the stranded astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Williams, back to Earth. He took a jibe at former President Joe Biden , referring to their eight-day mission that had stretched into nearly nine months.

“Biden left them up there,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

Responding to a question about the stranded astronauts, Trump mentioned that he had asked his DOGE Chief, Elon Musk, for assistance.

“We have two astronauts that are stuck in space. I have asked Elon (Musk), I said, ‘Do me a favor. Can you get them out?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ He’s preparing to go up, I think, in two weeks.” Trump added that Musk is “right now preparing a ship to go up” and bring them back.

Trump also complimented Sunita Williams’ hair, saying, “And I see the woman with the wild hair, good solid head of hair she’s got. There’s no kidding, there’s no games with her hair,” during remarks in the Oval Office on Thursday.

In his message to the stranded astronauts, Trump said, “We’re coming for you.” He further called Biden the “most incompetent president in history.”

“We love you, and we’re coming up to get you. You shouldn’t have been up there so long,” the President remarked. Describing Biden’s actions, Trump said he “allowed that to happen to you, but this president won’t let it happen.”

“We’re going to get them out. We’re coming up to get you,” Trump said, lifting his head and looking up, as if sending a message to the astronauts.

Further highlighting the dangers of being stuck in space, he said, “They’ve been left up there. I hope they like each other, but they’ve been… maybe they’ll love each other, I don’t know, but they’ve been left up there. Think of it. There’s a danger up there too. It can have some failures up there. That would be very bad. You’ve got to get them out.”

The President mentioned that he had given SpaceX the responsibility and that they were preparing to bring them back with a Starship. He also jokingly suggested that he should be on the ship that retrieves them.

“So, I’ve authorized Elon. A week ago, I said, ‘We have two people up there that Biden and Kamala (Harris) left up there, and he knows it very well. I said, ‘Are you equipped to get them?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ He’s got a Starship, and they’re preparing it right now, and so Elon is going to go up and get them.”

“Should I go on that journey just to be on the ship?” Trump said amid laughter from the reporters in the Oval Office.

Taking to X, Musk alleged that the Biden administration did not approve him to bring the astronauts back to Earth. He said, “The astronauts were only supposed to be up there for 8 days and now have been there for 8 months.”

“SpaceX could have sent up another Dragon and brought them home 6 months ago, but the Biden White House (not NASA) refused to allow it. President Trump asked to bring them back as soon as possible, and we are doing so,” Musk added.

Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore embarked on what was meant to be an eight-day mission to the ISS aboard Boeing’s Starliner in June 2024. However, technical issues, including helium leaks and thruster malfunctions, stretched their mission to nearly 8 months.

In January 2025, Williams set a new record for total spacewalking hours by a woman, logging 62 hours and 6 minutes during a mission with Wilmore. In 2012, Williams also became the first person to complete a triathlon in space, using modified equipment to simulate swimming, cycling, and running.