President Trump said Tuesday he was once again nominating astronaut and entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, roughly five months after he had withdrawn Isaacman as his choice to lead the space agency.
“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 bold new Era,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
Trump announced in May that he was pulling Isaacman’s nomination to serve as NASA administrator. The move came just days before the Senate was expected to confirm Isaacman to the role.
Trump at the time cited a “thorough review of prior associations” as the reason for withdrawing Isaacman as the pick. White House officials later said Trump wanted to ensure his nominees were aligned with his “America first mission.”
The comments sparked speculation that Isaacman was caught in the crossfire of a feud that was unfolding at the time between Trump and Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who had advocated for Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman worked alongside Musk at SpaceX to fund the company’s first private spacewalk.
Other Trump allies suggested Isaacman’s past campaign contributions to Democrats were a problem.
Trump and Musk have since had a detente in their relationship, having appeared together publicly and spoken on the phone multiple times since Musk left his government job leading the Department of Government Efficiency.
Source: The Hill