Trump renominates billionaire Jared Isaacman to lead NASA
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he was nominating billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to head NASA, months after abruptly removing Isaacman’s name in May.
“Jared’s passion for space, his experience as an astronaut, and his 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 bold new era,” Trump said in an article on Truth Social.
If confirmed, Isaacman would take over leadership of NASA from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has served as the space agency’s acting administrator since July.
Isaacman, 42, is considered a relative outsider to the space agency’s leadership. Founder and CEO of payment processing company Shift4, Isaacman has never worked at NASA or the federal government.
He did, however, fly into space twice on commercial SpaceX missions. Isaacman financed these two space flights himself, for an undisclosed amount.
Trump initially announced Isaacman as his choice in December 2024. But five months later, he withdrew the nomination after what he described as “a thorough review of prior associations.” Trump did not provide details, but some Republicans raised concerns that Isaacman had already donated to Democrats.
Isaacman, if confirmed this time, would take over as head of NASA at a time of great upheaval within the space agency. Like other parts of the federal government, NASA has suffered significant funding and staffing cuts as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce the size of the federal workforce.
NASA has cut about a fifth of its workforce, including more than 2,000 senior executives, since President Trump returned to office. Last month, the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced it would cut 550 jobs, or about 10% of its workforce.
The space agency also faces the possibility of steep budget cuts. President Trump’s budget plan proposed cutting NASA funding by more than $6 billion, or about 24 percent. As the government shutdown continues, many questions about NASA’s future remain unanswered.
This turmoil takes place amid a new space race between the United States and China. The two countries are vying to establish a long-term human presence on the Moon. NASA wants to land astronauts there in 2027, although this timetable has already been exceeded and could still happen. China, meanwhile, has announced plans to land its own astronauts on the lunar surface by 2030.
Elon Musk, founder and CEO of SpaceX, was once a close ally of Trump and strongly supported Isaacman when Trump first nominated him. Trump’s decision to withdraw the nomination coincided with a public and ugly feud between Musk and the president.
This time around, Trump’s announcement of Isaacman’s reappointment came two weeks after Musk attacked Duffy on X, the social media platform Musk owns.
NASA’s acting administrator angered Elon Musk when he announced that the agency would open a contract that SpaceX currently holds to build a lunar lander, allowing bids from competing companies.
SpaceX won a $2.9 billion contract in 2021 to use its Starship rocket system to land two astronauts on the lunar surface for NASA’s Artemis III mission, scheduled to launch in 2027. But Duffy said SpaceX has fallen behind schedule and the government intends to foster competition.
Musk took to X to express his displeasure with Duffy’s statements, calling him “Sean Dummy” and saying the acting administrator was “trying to kill NASA.”
SpaceX’s activities are closely linked to those of NASA. In addition to lunar mission plans, the space agency relies heavily on Musk’s company to transport its astronauts and cargo to and from the International Space Station.
