President-elect Donald Trump has appointed a billionaire space tourist to lead NASA.
Jared Isaacman, 41, with a net worth of $1.9 billion, has been nominated for the position of administrator of the space agency, replacing former politician Bill Nelson.
“I am honored to receive President Trump’s nomination as the next Administrator of NASA,” Isaacman wrote on X.
“Having been fortunate enough to see our amazing planet from space, I am passionate about America leading the most incredible adventure in human history.”
If confirmed, he would oversee the space agency’s roughly $25 billion budget, which is heavily focused on returning humans to the moon under the Artemis program, a multibillion-dollar effort that is heavily will depend on SpaceX’s Starship.
Isaacman, CEO of payment processing company Shift4 Payments, is also expected to double down on the agency’s strategy of relying on private companies for access to space.
He has flown to space twice, once completing the first civilian spacewalk, making him only the second administrator to visit the final frontier.
Trump’s choice of NASA came months earlier than previous presidential transitions, as Elon Musk, the CEO and founder of SpaceX, has used his proximity to the president-elect to discuss missions to Mars and other space exploration matters that could boost SpaceX.
Jared Isaacman, 41, with a net worth of $1.9 billion, has been nominated as administrator of the space agency, replacing former politician Bill Nelson
He has flown to space twice, once completing the first civilian spacewalk, making him only the second administrator to visit the final frontier.
“Americans will walk on the moon and Mars and by doing so we will make life better here on Earth,” Isaacman said.
“It will be the honor of a lifetime to serve in this role and work with NASA’s extraordinary team to realize our shared dreams of exploration and discovery.”
Trump’s first NASA chief, former Oklahoma Congressman Jim Bridenstine, launched the Artemis program and convinced Congress to increase the agency’s budget to fund it.
“Jared will drive NASA’s mission of discovery and inspiration, paving the way for groundbreaking achievements in space science, technology and exploration,” Trump wrote on X.
“(His) passion for space, astronaut experience and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unraveling the mysteries of the universe and advancing the new space economy make him ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new era to lead.’
Isaacman criticized NASA’s high spending on Artemis under the Biden administration.
‘Spend billions on redundancy of lunar landers that you don’t have with SLS, at the expense of dozens of scientific programs. I don’t like it,” Isaacman shared on X earlier this year.
The space agency has recently come under fire for overspending, particularly on DEI programs that cost Americans $22 million a year.
Trump’s choice of NASA came months earlier than previous presidential transitions, as Elon Musk, the CEO and founder of SpaceX, has used his proximity to the president-elect to discuss missions to Mars and other space exploration matters that could boost SpaceX.
Although Isaacman has recently become a household name in space, he was just getting started in 2021 with the first all-civilian mission, Inspiration4.
Before the launch, he also started a fundraising campaign for St Jude Research Hospital, which raised more than $240 million.
Isaacman and his wife Monica are members of the hospital’s ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization, and have quietly helped countless nonprofits and charities.
“If you have the ability to help, you have the responsibility to help,” Isaacman had previously said in an interview at St Jude.
Speaking ahead of the 2021 mission, he said: ‘I really want us to live in a world in 50 or 100 years’ time where people are jumping into their rockets like the Jetsons and where families are bouncing around on the moon with their child in spacesuits.’
And in 2024, he became the first civilian to perform a spacewalk when he ventured to the final frontier, more than 1,400 feet (435 meters) from Earth.
Footage of the event showed Isaacman opening the hatch to space and pulling himself into the void.
“We have a lot of work to do at home, but from here the Earth sure looks like a perfect world,” Isaacman said as he stepped into space.
On Wednesday, Trump praised Isaacman for his more than 25-year career as a successful CEO.
“Jared has demonstrated exceptional leadership and built a groundbreaking global financial technology company,” the president-elect said.
“He also co-founded and served as CEO of Draken International, a defense aerospace company, for over a decade in support of the U.S. Department of Defense and our allies.