Elon Musk accused Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who also serves as acting administrator of NASA, of attempting to “kill” the agency, sparking a social media feud over America’s space program.

Musk labeled Duffy “Sean Dummy” in a series of posts, asserting, “The person responsible for America’s space program can’t have a 2 digit IQ.” The remarks followed Duffy’s announcement that NASA is open to using lunar landers from competitors to SpaceX as part of its plan to return astronauts to the moon before China achieves the same milestone.

NASA had previously prioritized SpaceX’s Starship rocket system, a next-generation vehicle under development for the Artemis III mission slated for 2027. However, Musk’s company has faced delays in testing and suffered explosive failures this year.

In response, Musk created a poll on his platform X, asking followers: “Should someone whose biggest claim to fame is climbing trees be running America’s space program?” The options included “Yezz, chimps skillz rūl!” and “Noo, he need moar brainz!” By Tuesday afternoon, the poll had garnered nearly 110,000 votes.

Duffy, a former professional lumberjack with multiple speed-climbing titles, stated during an interview that SpaceX “does remarkable things” but is “behind schedule.” He also announced plans to open NASA contracts to competing space companies.

The controversy coincided with reports of Jared Isaacman, a Musk ally and private astronaut, potentially resuming his bid for NASA administrator amid political shifts. Trump previously withdrew Isaacman’s nomination earlier this year, though recent developments suggest he may re-enter the race after meeting with the former president.