Ted Cruz defends F-35 after Elon Musk calls jet a waste

FORT WORTH – The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that Texas Sen. Ted Cruz defended Lockheed Martin’s F-35 in a recent interview following billionaire Elon Musk’s call to stop funding program. Musk, who has been tapped to lead President-elect Donald Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency with Vivek Ramaswamy, has criticized the Fort Worth-built fighter jet. In recent posts on his social media company X, Musk said Lookheed Martin’s F-35 program should “stop,” calling it the “worst military value for money in history that is the F-35.” In another post, he said “manned fighter jets are obsolete in the age of drones.” Cruz addressed Musk’s criticisms and expressed support for the program in an interview with WFAA, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s media partner.

Cruz said he’s a “big fan” of the F-35. The fighter jet gives provides the U.S. an “enormous advantage against our adversaries,” Cruz said, in the interview that aired on Sunday’s “Inside Texas Politics.” Musk is correct that the country needs to be investing in next generation technology, like hypersonics, drones and drone technology, Cruz said. “There’s a lot of advanced weaponry that we need to be investing in, but I think the F-35 gives us an advantage over every one of our enemies across the globe,” Cruz said. “And if there’s one thing the last four years have shown with the mess of foreign policy that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris created, is that we live in a dangerous world, and we need to be prepared to defend ourselves, and I think the F-35 is a hugely important part of doing that.” Musk, who owns X, Tesla and SpaceX, and Ramaswamy, a billionaire and former Republican presidential candidate, are tasked with recommending federal spending cuts to Trump. The Star-Telegram has reached out to spokespersons at Tesla and Space X seeking Musk’s comment on Cruz’s remarks.