Trump yanks Elon Musk ally's NASA nomination
The White House has withdrawn its nominee for NASA administrator, Jared Isaacman, abruptly yanking a close ally of Elon Musk from consideration to lead the space agency.
President Donald Trump will announce a new candidate soon, White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said.
"It is 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," she said.
Isaacman, a billionaire private astronaut who had been Musk's pick to lead NASA, was due next week for a much-delayed confirmation vote before the US Senate. His removal from consideration caught many in the space industry by surprise.
The White House did not explain what led to the decision. Isaacman, whose removal was earlier reported by Semafor, did not return a request for comment.
Isaacman's removal comes just days after Musk's official departure from the White House, where the SpaceX CEO's role as a "special government employee" leading the Department of Government Efficiency created turbulence for the administration and frustrated some of Trump's aides.
Musk, according to a person familiar with his reaction, was disappointed by Isaacman's removal and considered it to be politically motivated.
"It is rare to find someone so competent and good-hearted," Musk wrote of Isaacman on X, replying to the news of the White House's decision.
Isaacman, the former CEO of payment processor company Shift4, had broad space industry support but drew concerns from lawmakers over his ties to Musk and SpaceX, where he spent hundreds of millions of dollars as an early private spaceflight customer.
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7NEWS
2 hours ago
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Senator Dorinda Cox defects from the Greens and joins Labor in stunning power move
Western Australian Senator Dorinda Cox has defected from the Greens to join the Australian Labor Party in what's being seen as a stunning political shake-up. Senator Cox made the announcement while standing alongside Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at a press conference in Perth on Monday afternoon. 'I am very, very grateful for this opportunity and I want to thank the Labor team for welcoming me,' Cox said, appearing visibly emotional as she confirmed her move to the government benches. The defection comes just weeks after the federal election and marks a significant blow to the Greens, reducing their Senate representation to 10 members. Senator Cox, whose current term runs until 2028, was not up for re-election last month. 'Well, I think it's been over a period of time that I've considered this. It hasn't, as I said, been a decision that I've made lightly,' Cox explained. She revealed that she informed new Greens leader Larissa Waters only 90 minutes before making the news public. Prime Minister Albanese praised Cox's decision, emphasizing that the approach came from the senator herself. 'She had come to a view that the difference that she wanted to make in the Senate and as a West Australian, were better served by being a member of the Labor Party,' he said. 'Senator Cox didn't ask for anything, just asked for this to be considered.' Albanese added that the Labor Party's National Executive Committee met on Sunday afternoon and had approved her membership, with formal admission to the WA branch scheduled for Tuesday. Cox, who was previously affiliated with the Labor Party before joining the Greens, said her decision was about effectiveness in government. 'What you can't do from the crossbench is make change and being in the government and alongside the wonderful team that the Prime Minister has,' she said. The political fallout was swift. Within minutes of the press conference, Senator Cox's profile was removed from the Greens' official website, replaced with an 'ACCESS DENIED' message on her former biography page. Her departure adds to the Greens' post-election challenges. While the party maintained a steady primary vote nationwide, it suffered significant losses in the lower house — largely due to the flow of preferences — including the defeat of former leader Adam Bandt in Melbourne and housing spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather in Griffith. The party now holds just one lower house seat — Ryan, represented by Elizabeth Watson-Brown. Senator Cox's defection will reshape the political landscape in the Senate and strengthen Labor's hand in Western Australia, while leaving the Greens to rebuild under new leadership amid dwindling parliamentary numbers.
The Advertiser
3 hours ago
- The Advertiser
'Lost confidence': WA Greens senator defects to Labor
West Australian senator Dorinda Cox has defected from the Greens to Labor. Senator Cox, who was first elected to the upper house in 2021 to fill a vacancy for the Greens, said her values had aligned more with Labor. She approached Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, offering to join Labor and bolster its ranks in the Senate. "I've worked hard to make Australia fairer and much more reconciled, but recently, I've lost some confidence in the capacity for the Greens to assist me in being able to progress this," Senator Cox told reporters in Perth on Monday. "I feel reassured with my experience, my skills and my knowledge, I can continue to collaborate and build on the existing relationships with an already amazing team of Labor MPs across the country." Senator Cox, who was a member of the Labor Party before she joined the Greens, will be formally admitted into Labor on Tuesday. Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." The senator said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "It was a decision that I made, and I made that based on some deep reflection," she said. "It was one that I considered both at a professional level, but also at a personal level. So this wasn't a decision that I did on the hop or based on emotion." Senator Cox was accused of bullying staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox only informed Greens leader Larissa Waters of her decision to leave the party 90 minutes before her defection was announced. She will join the government ranks despite having made previous comments critical of Labor policy. Senator Cox had previously spoken out against Woodside's North-West Shelf gas project, which Labor on Wednesday granted an extension until 2070. Pressed on her previous opposition to the project, Senator Cox said she did not want to comment on the issue as the extension was still being provisionally approved. "Obviously, I will be working with the Labor government now to ensure that we tread a pathway forward in ensuring that there's a delivery of what's required for the Australian public, particularly for the West Australian public," she said. "I would need to look at the provisional approval that's been made by (Environment Minister Murray Watt)." Senator Cox also criticised the Albanese government in August, saying it was not interested in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. She had also said Australia was complicit in "making Israel's war crimes possible" in reference to the conflict in the Middle East. West Australian senator Dorinda Cox has defected from the Greens to Labor. Senator Cox, who was first elected to the upper house in 2021 to fill a vacancy for the Greens, said her values had aligned more with Labor. She approached Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, offering to join Labor and bolster its ranks in the Senate. "I've worked hard to make Australia fairer and much more reconciled, but recently, I've lost some confidence in the capacity for the Greens to assist me in being able to progress this," Senator Cox told reporters in Perth on Monday. "I feel reassured with my experience, my skills and my knowledge, I can continue to collaborate and build on the existing relationships with an already amazing team of Labor MPs across the country." Senator Cox, who was a member of the Labor Party before she joined the Greens, will be formally admitted into Labor on Tuesday. Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." The senator said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "It was a decision that I made, and I made that based on some deep reflection," she said. "It was one that I considered both at a professional level, but also at a personal level. So this wasn't a decision that I did on the hop or based on emotion." Senator Cox was accused of bullying staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox only informed Greens leader Larissa Waters of her decision to leave the party 90 minutes before her defection was announced. She will join the government ranks despite having made previous comments critical of Labor policy. Senator Cox had previously spoken out against Woodside's North-West Shelf gas project, which Labor on Wednesday granted an extension until 2070. Pressed on her previous opposition to the project, Senator Cox said she did not want to comment on the issue as the extension was still being provisionally approved. "Obviously, I will be working with the Labor government now to ensure that we tread a pathway forward in ensuring that there's a delivery of what's required for the Australian public, particularly for the West Australian public," she said. "I would need to look at the provisional approval that's been made by (Environment Minister Murray Watt)." Senator Cox also criticised the Albanese government in August, saying it was not interested in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. She had also said Australia was complicit in "making Israel's war crimes possible" in reference to the conflict in the Middle East. West Australian senator Dorinda Cox has defected from the Greens to Labor. Senator Cox, who was first elected to the upper house in 2021 to fill a vacancy for the Greens, said her values had aligned more with Labor. She approached Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, offering to join Labor and bolster its ranks in the Senate. "I've worked hard to make Australia fairer and much more reconciled, but recently, I've lost some confidence in the capacity for the Greens to assist me in being able to progress this," Senator Cox told reporters in Perth on Monday. "I feel reassured with my experience, my skills and my knowledge, I can continue to collaborate and build on the existing relationships with an already amazing team of Labor MPs across the country." Senator Cox, who was a member of the Labor Party before she joined the Greens, will be formally admitted into Labor on Tuesday. Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." The senator said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "It was a decision that I made, and I made that based on some deep reflection," she said. "It was one that I considered both at a professional level, but also at a personal level. So this wasn't a decision that I did on the hop or based on emotion." Senator Cox was accused of bullying staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox only informed Greens leader Larissa Waters of her decision to leave the party 90 minutes before her defection was announced. She will join the government ranks despite having made previous comments critical of Labor policy. Senator Cox had previously spoken out against Woodside's North-West Shelf gas project, which Labor on Wednesday granted an extension until 2070. Pressed on her previous opposition to the project, Senator Cox said she did not want to comment on the issue as the extension was still being provisionally approved. "Obviously, I will be working with the Labor government now to ensure that we tread a pathway forward in ensuring that there's a delivery of what's required for the Australian public, particularly for the West Australian public," she said. "I would need to look at the provisional approval that's been made by (Environment Minister Murray Watt)." Senator Cox also criticised the Albanese government in August, saying it was not interested in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. She had also said Australia was complicit in "making Israel's war crimes possible" in reference to the conflict in the Middle East. West Australian senator Dorinda Cox has defected from the Greens to Labor. Senator Cox, who was first elected to the upper house in 2021 to fill a vacancy for the Greens, said her values had aligned more with Labor. She approached Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, offering to join Labor and bolster its ranks in the Senate. "I've worked hard to make Australia fairer and much more reconciled, but recently, I've lost some confidence in the capacity for the Greens to assist me in being able to progress this," Senator Cox told reporters in Perth on Monday. "I feel reassured with my experience, my skills and my knowledge, I can continue to collaborate and build on the existing relationships with an already amazing team of Labor MPs across the country." Senator Cox, who was a member of the Labor Party before she joined the Greens, will be formally admitted into Labor on Tuesday. Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." The senator said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "It was a decision that I made, and I made that based on some deep reflection," she said. "It was one that I considered both at a professional level, but also at a personal level. So this wasn't a decision that I did on the hop or based on emotion." Senator Cox was accused of bullying staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox only informed Greens leader Larissa Waters of her decision to leave the party 90 minutes before her defection was announced. She will join the government ranks despite having made previous comments critical of Labor policy. Senator Cox had previously spoken out against Woodside's North-West Shelf gas project, which Labor on Wednesday granted an extension until 2070. Pressed on her previous opposition to the project, Senator Cox said she did not want to comment on the issue as the extension was still being provisionally approved. "Obviously, I will be working with the Labor government now to ensure that we tread a pathway forward in ensuring that there's a delivery of what's required for the Australian public, particularly for the West Australian public," she said. "I would need to look at the provisional approval that's been made by (Environment Minister Murray Watt)." Senator Cox also criticised the Albanese government in August, saying it was not interested in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. She had also said Australia was complicit in "making Israel's war crimes possible" in reference to the conflict in the Middle East.
ABC News
4 hours ago
- ABC News
Greens senator Dorinda Cox defects to Labor
Dorinda Cox will leave the Greens and join Labor's ranks in the federal Senate, citing a loss of confidence in the minor party.
