If only there was an organization who could work with SpaceX towards this goal. This organization would have to be goal-driven rather than profit-driven. Years ago, that would have been NASA, but we had to gut their funding because they're not as essential as blowing up people of other religions on the other side of the planet nor do NASA's endeavors bring back a big enough return on investment.
The whole thing is really a shame. If we hadn't already gone to the moon and attempted to do so today, the mission would get no support. Everyone would be asking why we were doing it and what would we be getting for our money. Looking back, those missions created over 400,000 jobs in engineering and created advances in propulsion, computer software and hardware, materials and mechanical engineering, insulation, navigation, etc. The discoveries made during this period set up the U.S. for decades of prosperity greater than anyone imagined before the mission. Now we're stuck in a society where nobody wants to do anything unless there will be some kind of return almost immediately. Keep challenging people's notions of our limits and fighting against the mindsets of small-minded short-term investors, Elon. You've already proven them wrong with Tesla Motors and if anyone can get us to Mars at this point, it's you.