Bid to relocate space shuttle Discovery faces museum pushback
Tucked inside President
Donald Trump
's flagship tax and spending bill last month was a little-noticed provision to relocate the iconic Space Shuttle Discovery from a museum outside Washington DC to
Houston
.
The plan now faces legal uncertainty, with the Smithsonian Institution arguing Congress had no authority to give away what it considers private property -- even before accounting for the steep logistical and financial challenges. "The Smithsonian Institution owns the Discovery and holds it in trust for the American public," the museum network, which receives substantial federal funding yet remains an independent entity, said in a statement on Friday.
In 2012, Nasa transferred 'all rights, title, interest and ownership' of the shuttle to the Smithsonian.
The push to move Discovery from the Air and Space Museum's site in northern Virginia began in April, when Texas Senator John Cornyn, a Republican who faces a tough primary challenge next year by state attorney Ken Paxton, introduced the 'Bring the Space Shuttle Home Act,' naming Discovery. It stalled until it was folded into the 'Big Beautiful Bill,' signed into law on July 4. Its passage allocated $85 million for the move, though experts say the move would cost at least $325 million.
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