Trump reverses course to renominate billionaire Musk ally to lead Nasa | Nasa
Donald Trump renewed his nomination of billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman to be NASA administrator.
“Tonight, I am pleased to nominate Jared Isaacman, an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot, and astronaut, as Administrator of NASA. Jared’s passion for Space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and advancing the new Space economy make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a brave new Era. Congratulations to Jared, his wife, Monica, and their children, Mila and Liv,” Trump said. he wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday.
The move comes just months after Trump recalled Isaacman, an ally of billionaire Elon Musk, for the same post in May. Just a week before Isaacman’s confirmation, Trump shared: “After a thorough review of previous affiliations, I am withdrawing Jared Isaacman’s nomination to head NASA. I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be well-suited to the role and put America first in space.”
Isaacman’s first nomination came just days after Musk’s official departure from the White House; The SpaceX CEO’s role as a “special government employee” leading the so-called department of government efficiency (Doge) has created turbulence for the administration and frustrated some of Trump’s aides.
The president then appointed transportation secretary Sean Duffy as NASA administrator until a permanent space agency chief is selected. In his refresher post, Trump briefly touched on Duffy’s service, writing: “Sean Duffy has done an incredible job as the Interim Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).”
Isaacman, the former CEO of payment processor company Shift4, has broad space industry support but has drawn concerns from lawmakers about his ties to Musk and SpaceX, with whom he spent hundreds of millions of dollars as the first private spaceflight customer.
He had donated to Democrats in previous elections. At his confirmation hearing in April, he sought to balance NASA’s current moon-aligned space exploration strategy with pressure to shift the agency’s focus to Mars, saying the U.S. could plan trips to both destinations.
Isaacman, the soon-to-be leader of NASA’s 18,000 employees, faces the daunting task of implementing the decision to prioritize Mars, given that NASA has spent years and billions of dollars trying to return its astronauts to the moon.
