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The Senate confirmed billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman on Wednesday as the new administrator of NASA, handing President Donald Trump a key victory after the president nominated him for the post twice.
Trump first selected Isaacman for the role last year, but later withdrew the nomination in May and appointed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to serve as acting administrator. Trump renominated Isaacman last month, moving forward despite Isaacman’s lack of prior federal government experience.
Isaacman is the founder and chief executive of credit card payment processing company Shift4 and is a close ally of SpaceX founder Elon Musk. He has also helped fund Musk’s Polaris Project, a private spaceflight initiative.
The Senate approved Isaacman’s nomination by a bipartisan vote of 67-30.
Duffy congratulated Isaacman in a post on X following the vote.
“Congratulations to Jared Isaacman on his confirmation as NASA Administrator,” Duffy wrote from NASA’s official account. “It’s been an honor to help drive [President Trump’s] vision for American leadership in space. I wish Jared success as he begins his tenure and leads NASA as we go back to the Moon in 2028 and beat China.”
Isaacman takes over the agency as the Trump administration pushes to accelerate lunar exploration and compete with China’s growing space ambitions.
“We are in a great competition with a rival that has the will and means to challenge American exceptionalism across multiple domains, including in the high ground of space,” Isaacman told the Senate Commerce Committee ahead of the vote.
“This is not the time for delay but for action, because if we fall behind, if we make a mistake, we may never catch up, and the consequences could shift the balance of power here on Earth,” he added.
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz shared remarks in support of Isaacman ahead of the vote, emphasizing America’s need to remain the leader in space exploration.
“I know Mr. Isaacman will be a strong leader who sees that Artemis 2 launches safely, successfully, and without delay,” Cruz said. “He must then turn to Artemis 3, landing Americans on the Moon before China, which is aiming to send its own taikonauts there by 2030. NASA cannot take its eye off the ball.”