Trump renominates Jared Isaacman for NASA administrator

The private astronaut and entrepreneur will get a second chance to be confirmed as NASA's leader at a critical juncture for the agency.
By | Published: November 4, 2025

Jared Isaacman speaks before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Jared Isaacman speaks before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on April 9. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
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Key Takeaways:

  • President Trump has renominated Jared Isaacman for the position of NASA administrator.
  • This renominaton follows a previous withdrawal of Isaacman's candidacy, which was attributed to his past support for Democratic politicians and a prior strained relationship between President Trump and Elon Musk.
  • President Trump cited Isaacman's experience as an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot, and astronaut, along with his dedication to space exploration, as key qualifications for the role.
  • If confirmed by the Senate, Isaacman would succeed Sean Duffy, who has been serving as interim NASA administrator.
Key takeaways sponsored by The Space Store

President Donald J. Trump on Tuesday evening announced he was nominating Jared Isaacman to the post of NASA administrator for a second time — a remarkable revival of the private astronaut and entrepreneur’s bid to lead the U.S. space agency.

Trump had previously nominated Isaacman for the post late last year on the recommendation of SpaceX’s Elon Musk — a campaign donor and then close advisor — only to withdraw the nomination May 31, citing Isaacman’s past support for Democratic politicians. The withdrawal came amid a stunning public breakdown in the president’s relationship with Musk. But this fall, as Trump and Musk took steps to mend fences, rumors began circulating that Trump could renominate Isaacman.

The rumors have now become reality. “This evening, I am pleased to nominate Jared Isaacman, an accomplished business leader, philanthropist, pilot, and astronaut, as Administrator of NASA,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. “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,” he added, using language identical to his announcement of Isaacman’s first nomination.

Isaacman acknowledged the nomination and thanked Trump in a post on X, the social media platform owned by Musk.

If approved by the Senate, Isaacman would succeed Sean Duffy, who has served simultaneously as Trump’s transportation secretary and NASA administrator since being named to the latter role in an interim capacity in July. Over the past month, reports have swirled that Duffy was keen on keeping the role permanently.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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