Hearing could set up billionaire Isaacman for full Senate vote to lead NASA

Billionaire and two-time traveler to space Jared Isaacman could soon get the full Senate’s attention for his nomination by President Donald Trump to be the next head of NASA.

Isaacman testified April 9 before the Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation and written responses to questions from Republican and Democratic members were published Thursday.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and committee chairman, set a 10 a.m. session for Wednesday during which members could vote on Isaacman’s nomination and send it to the Senate floor for consideration.

Members from both sides of the aisle raised concerns about proposed budget cuts, especially to science missions, and pressed Isaacman for commitments to prioritize the moon over Mars.

His responses tiptoed around some issues, such as how involved SpaceX founder Elon Musk may have been in Trump’s decision to nominate Isaacman, as well avoiding any outright financial promises.

Isaacman twice flew as a customer of SpaceX, first with the Inspiration4 mission in 2021 on what was the first all-civilian orbital spaceflight. Last year he was on the Polaris Dawn mission during which he and a SpaceX employee performed the first commercial spacewalk.

The entrepreneur earned his fortune founding Shift4, a credit card processing company. He then founded aerospace company Draken, based in Lakeland, Florida, which helps train fighter pilots.

He leaned into that 26 years of experience when outlining what someone like himself, who’s not a politician, could bring to NASA.

“What I’ve learned is that results don’t come from slogans or slide decks — they come from leadership that’s present, hands-on, and relentlessly focused on mission execution,” he said in reply to a question from Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., about costs and delays in the Artemis program. “NASA knows this better than anyone — based on what has been accomplished historically — we just need to restore that mission-first culture.”

He hammered home his intentions to reduce bureaucracy and speed up decision-making while improving program management and making vendors accountable.

“If confirmed, I’ll roll up my sleeves, get in the trenches with the team and lead a cultural and program management transformation,” he said. “We’ll take a hard look at the real problems — both internal and external — that slow progress and put timelines and budgets at risk.”

A big focus of several senators has been reports Trump’s budget looks to cut NASA’s nearly $7.6 billion budget for space science by nearly half.

Isaacman assured he was keen to keep funding for existing programs such as the Hubble, James Webb and Chandra space telescopes.

“If confirmed, I will advocate for strong investment in space science — across astrophysics, planetary science, Earth science, lunar science and heliophysics — and for securing as much funding as the government can reasonably allocate,” he said. “I also believe we should look to amplify these efforts through partnerships with international partners, commercial industry and academia whenever possible.”

He also stated a commitment to the not-yet-launched Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, responding to a question from Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii.

“To my knowledge, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is nearing completion and remains on schedule and within budget — something that is unfortunately rare for flagship programs at the agency,” he said. “I’m not aware of any reason why it should be canceled and I would support its completion and successful deployment.”

The push by the Trump administration to drop space science funding also comes as several key personnel were terminated, including the agency’s chief scientist and chief technologist.

“A ~50% reduction to NASA’s science budget does not appear to be an optimal outcome,” Isaacman wrote in response to a question from Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., that was concerned about DOGE-type layoffs.

He also said he would look into those terminations as well as that of the agency’s chief economist, especially since he would need that sort of help to accomplish what he plans for NASA.

When pressed by Cruz about how he intends to assist in NASA’s goal of fostering a strong low-Earth economy, Isaacman said he would like to understand the agency’s current resources and internal capabilities.

“I’m aware that certain economic offices or roles were recently dissolved and I’d want to review that rationale and determine whether that expertise should be restored or supplemented,” he said.

A big push from senators was whether Isaacman would prioritize the president’s desire to put a human on Mars over the current plan for Artemis to return them to the moon — which Congress put into law.

“I’m committed to following the law — and as a lifelong space enthusiast, I would like nothing more than to see lunar operations become continuous, enduring and routine,” he said. “That said, maintaining American leadership in space will require flexible policies that ensure clear scientific, economic and strategic value for the American taxpayer and allow the agency, working with the Congress, to adapt to meet the ever changing geopolitical landscape.”