Jared Isaacman is scheduled to appear at a Senate hearing today ahead of his confirmation vote to become NASA’s next administrator. Watch it live.
Entrepreneur Jared Isaacman may experience a little déjà vu on Capital Hill this week.
The billionaire space traveler, who was nominated by President Donald Trump to lead NASA, is scheduled to return to the halls of Congress to meet again with U.S. senators who were part of the committee that first questioned Isaacman in April. It came as Isaacman was trying to get the necessary congressional green light to take over the world’s largest space agency.
However, President Trump changed his mind in late May and withdrew Isaacman’s bid for NASA.
Now, following President Trump’s change of heart, Isaacman is once again the frontrunner for the role of NASA administrator. And his next step on the path to the job is to appear before a hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee.
Want to know what Isaacman has to say this time? Here’s what you need to know about the hearing and how to watch the livestream.
Senate to hold hearing on Jared Isaacman’s NASA reappointment
Isaacman will face his second confirmation hearing before the same committee that voted in April to clear the way for a full Senate vote on his initial nomination to head NASA.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, will lead the hearing.
How to watch the Jared Isaacman NASA confirmation hearing
The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Dec. 3, and will be livestreamed on the Senate committee’s website and YouTube page.
Will the Senate be able to quickly vote to confirm Isaacman?
Before the confirmation hearing, the Commerce Committee has already scheduled a vote on Isaacman’s nomination and re-election.
The commission announced on Dec. 1 that it would hold a board meeting on Monday, Dec. 8 to vote on multiple candidates, including Isaacman, Reuters reported. If Isaacman passes the committee, his nomination will be considered by the full Senate.
Isaacman is poised to take over the agency, which is facing historic budget cuts as it prepares for the first manned moon exploration in more than 50 years under the Artemis program.
NASA has been without a full-time administrator since January. If confirmed, Isaacman will officially replace Bill Nelson, a former astronaut and Democratic U.S. senator from Florida, who was nominated by former President Joe Biden to be NASA administrator.
Trump again nominates Isaacman as NASA administrator
Trump, who first announced Isaacman’s candidacy for NASA in a post on Truth Social in December 2024, abruptly withdrew his nomination at the end of May. The decision comes amid a tense public feud with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a close ally of Isaacman.
President Trump then appointed U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy in July, giving him the dual role of leading NASA as acting administrator.
President Trump nominated Isaacman in November, telling Truth Social that Isaacman was “the ideal person to lead NASA into a bold new era.”
Isaacman thanked Trump on social media and vowed that under Trump’s leadership, NASA will “inspire the world again.”
Who is Jared Isaacman? Billionaire has been to space twice
Isaacman, 42, famously made his fortune by dropping out of school at age 16 to start internet payment processing company Shift4 Payments.
An experienced aviator, Isaacman has been to space twice, both on private missions he helped fund, launching from the Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral, Florida.
His first journey took place in 2021, when he was the commander of the first-ever mission known as Inspiration 4.
Isaacman then returned to space in September 2024 with an all-civilian crew of amateur astronauts on a mission known as Polaris Dawn, co-funded by SpaceX. During their five-day spaceflight, Isaacman and his three-member crew reached historic high altitudes on the SpaceX Dragon and also performed the first commercial spacewalk.
Contributor: Today Florida Brooke Edwards. Reuters
Eric Lagatta is a Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Please contact elagatta@gannett.com.
