Billionaire SpaceX Customer Flies Private Jet Into DC to Become New Head of NASA

Yahoo

31-03-2025

Jared Isaacman, the billionaire fighter jet pilot-turned-SpaceX astronaut, has shared a photo of himself during his unusual "commute into DC" — which involved a Cessna CJ4 private jet.
The entrepreneur, who is estimated to be worth $1.9 billion, was tapped late last year by president Donald Trump to lead NASA, and he's chosen to head into the nation's capital to "meet with Senators this week" in a style that feels like a perfect illustration of the billionaires now running the government.
That's likely in anticipation of being sworn in, a decision that has seemingly been delayed by several months now. In his absence, NASA's acting administrator Janet Petro has been cracking the whip, overseeing mass layoffs and a major clampdown on personal freedoms among employees, including the purging of any paraphernalia related to the LBGTQ movement.
https://twitter.com/rookisaacman/status/1906700302083826101
But as Ars Technica reported last week, momentum appears to be building for Isaacman to take over. That's despite senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) — who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and is expected to reside over swearing-in procedures — voicing some concerns.
First and foremost, given Isaacman's extremely close proximity to SpaceX CEO and unelected White House hatchet man Elon Musk, concerns over NASA ditching its plans to return to the lunar surface in favor of visiting Mars first could lead to tensions during Isaacman's hearing.
Isaacman has traveled to space twice during two all-private missions involving SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsules. This past August, he became the first-ever civilian to embark on a spacewalk.
That kind of close association with Musk could end up being a major hindrance — or a carte blanche. Musk has gained a tremendous amount of influence over the federal government's budget allocations through his so-called Department of Government Efficiency, including at NASA.
In fact, recent reporting suggests that he and his space firm are looking to assume control over much of what's left of the space agency.
Isaacman himself has largely stayed out of the limelight and his own stance on critical matters, perhaps most notably NASA's plans to return to the Moon, remains unclear at best.
His relationship with SpaceX, however, could prove a sticking point. In a March 12 letter to NASA's chief legal officer Iris Lan, he argued that any possible conflicts of interest wouldn't be an issue.
"In the event that an actual or potential conflict of interest arises during my appointment, I will consult with an agency ethics official and take the measures necessary to resolve the conflict, such as recusal from the particular matter or divestiture of an asset," he wrote.
Whether that will be enough to appease Congress remains to be seen.
However, as Ars reports, the space travel community appears to have his back. A group of more than two dozen former astronauts sent Cruz a letter in support of Isaacman, arguing that he's "uniquely qualified to lead NASA at the critical juncture."
How all of this will play out is anybody's guess. Morale at the space agency is at historically low levels given its plundering by the Trump administration. Workers were given far less notice of their impending firing than contractually agreed upon and were even denied time-off awards.
That kind of callous treatment had many employees furious.
"Everybody's lost confidence," one employee who remains at the agency told CNN. "What was the urgency? It just seems cruel."
In short, it'd be an understatement to say that Isaacman has a lot of fires to put out. Questions surrounding his close relationship with SpaceX are bound to come up — especially if NASA does decide to nix its Moon program to fulfill Musk's personal wish to send astronauts to Mars.
According to Ars senior reporter Eric Berger, chances are we'll hear more about Isaacman's swearing-in soon.
"One-on-one meetings with US senators are a precursor to a committee hearing for Isaacman to become NASA administrator," he tweeted in response to Isaacman's latest post. "The timeline is not firm, but such a hearing could come in late April, with confirmation in May."
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