Jared Isaacman, a close associate of Tesla CEO Elon Musk and nominee for Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
On December 17 (local time), the U.S. Senate held a full session and voted on Isaacman's nomination, approving it with 67 votes in favor and 30 against.
Jared Isaacman, nominee for Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Photo by AFP Yonhap News.
As a result, Isaacman is set to take office as the Administrator of NASA.
Isaacman was nominated by U.S. President Donald Trump in December of last year. In April of this year, his nomination passed the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. However, at the end of May, President Trump abruptly withdrew the nomination after a falling out with CEO Musk.
Recently, as relations between the two improved, President Trump renominated Isaacman as NASA Administrator at the beginning of last month.
Isaacman is the founder of payment processing company Shift4 and, like CEO Musk, is a billionaire. There have been concerns about the relationship between Isaacman, CEO Musk, and SpaceX, as Isaacman personally funded and participated in SpaceX's civilian spaceflight missions. Such concerns were raised during the Senate committee confirmation hearing on December 3.
However, during the Senate confirmation hearing, Isaacman drew a clear line, stating, "I am not here to serve my personal interests, to benefit contractors, to make money, or to hinder programs essential to achieving America's space goals."
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