US President Donald Trump has withdrawn Elon Musk’s ally Jared Isacman’s nomination to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) ahead of voting.
According to CNN, in a surprising move, Trump on Saturday pulled his nomination of tech billionaire Isaacman after a “thorough review of prior associations.”
The Republican president also vowed to nominate a person who aligns with the mission and “puts America first in Space.”
‘Mission aligned’ nominee for NASA:
The 78-year-old in a post on his social media platform Truth Social wrote, “After a thorough review of prior associations, I am hereby withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman to head NASA. I will soon announce a new Nominee who will be Mission aligned, and put America First in Space.”
The decision came days before the Senate was expected to vote on the nomination of the commercial astronaut who also has close ties with SpaceX boss Musk.
White House assistant press secretary Liz Huston earlier on Saturday said, “It’s essential that the next leader of NASA is in complete alignment with President Trump’s America First agenda, and a replacement will be announced directly by President Trump soon.”
Isaacman, who has travelled to space twice on private missions during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in April, said that he has “been relatively apolitical.”
NASA administrators typically try to maintain a non-partisan stance, as they have to work across the aisle to secure funding and support for billions of dollars projects.
Notably, the decision came days after the richest man in the world stepped down from his role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
