YazataMay 1, 2025 12:30 AM (This post was last modified: May 1, 2025 01:47 AM by Yazata.)
The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee has just voted by 19-9 to approve Jared's nomination to be the next NASA Administrator. Next step is a vote by the full Senate. (My guess is that's pretty much a sure thing.
The no votes were all democrats: Klobuchar, Schatz, Markey, Peters, Duckworth, Rosen, Lujan, Fetterman, Blunt Rochester. They probably voted 'no' simply because President Trump nominated Jared and because he's a friend of Elon's. It's all about "resistance" with the dems.)
Jared's been relaxing in the meantime by flying his MIG-29.
Jared is apparently no longer the new NASA-Administrator designate!
It started out as an internet rumor this morning, and it's gathered momentum all day. Finally, the White House appears to have confirmed it, through a spokeswoman.
Given that he was due to come up for a Senate vote this week, and given that he already had enough votes lined up to be confirmed, it comes as a surprise and a shock.
Nobody knows why he's out and I can only guess. And my guess is that Jared might have objected to the proposed NASA budget cuts. Or maybe Jared simply didn't want to be the Administrator tasked with putting a happy-face on them.
The big question now is where this leaves NASA. Both NASA and the administration want a permanent human presence on the Moon and onward to Mars. But both Artemis and SLS are due to be retired after the first human Moon landing.
So that's going to call for a whole new architecture, somehow cobbled together out of what the private new-space companies like SpaceX and Blue can provide. Planning and organizing that calls for visionary NASA leadership already familiar with new-space, which is why Jared Isaacman excited everyone so much. He seemed to be exactly what the doctor ordered.
Eric Berger says he spoke off the record to a NASA insider today, who told him "We're fucked!"
YazataJun 1, 2025 03:58 AM (This post was last modified: Jun 1, 2025 06:57 AM by Yazata.)
Jared says
"I am incredibly grateful to President Trump @POTUS, the Senate and all those who supported me throughout this journey. The past six months have been enlightening and, honestly, a bit thrilling. I have gained a much deeper appreciation for the complexities of government and the weight our political leaders carry.
It may not always be obvious through the discourse and turbulence, but there are many competent, dedicated people who love this country and care deeply about the mission. That was on full display during my hearing, where leaders on both sides of the aisle made clear they’re willing to fight for the world’s most accomplished space agency.
The President, NASA and the American people deserve the very best--an Administrator ready to reorganize, rebuild and rally the best and brightest minds to deliver the world-changing headlines NASA was built to create.
I have not flown my last mission---whatever form that may ultimately take--but I remain incredibly optimistic that humanity’s greatest spacefaring days lie ahead. I’ll always be grateful for this opportunity and cheering on our President and NASA as they lead us on the greatest adventure in human history"
YazataJul 11, 2025 07:15 PM (This post was last modified: Jul 11, 2025 07:31 PM by Yazata.)
Jared says
"I think yesterday’s post sparked more debate than anything I have previously shared..it is probably worth a bit of clarification as I am a make nuance great again kind of guy. After this novel, I will take a break from longform for a bit.
If I have one overriding political position (and I hope we all share it) it is the competitiveness of the nation. This grew after I started my defense aerospace company in 2011--where our job was flying fighter jets as adversaries to help prepare and train US military pilots. I saw the pace of progress from potential adversaries, across multiple domains--and it is unsettling. We have a real geopolitical competitor, and competition is great..as long as we don't lose!
My post yesterday was not about one power source over another. I am not dying on a hill for solar, coal or nuclear (though I do very much support making nuclear great again..even in space). What matters is that we can afford to generate enough energy (we don't want to lose in power-hungry AI)--and most importantly is that we can take on big, bold endeavors again without taking decades and billions more than expected.
We don't have a world war or a cold war creating the urgency, but the risk to national security is still present. We need to return to the mindset that defined us during the Manhattan Project, the dawn of supersonic flight, the USS Nautilus, the Space Race and early supercomputers. Today’s equivalents are hypersonics, AI, quantum, fully reusable rockets, robotics and new nuclear--and we should be really concerned about falling behind.
The list of major projects that are 10+ years late and billions over budget keeps growing:
- A single Ford-class aircraft carrier
- The NextGen air traffic control program (started in 2003!)
- Ballistic missile sub and ICBM replacement programs
- The Artemis return-to-the-Moon program
- California high-speed rail
- The KC-46 tanker
- A single nuclear reactor at a power plant
- The original Hudson River tunnels were built between 1905–1910 for the equivalent of ~$3B today. The replacement will take 25 years and $15B for a single tunnel..and I would bet the over on costs.
Some blame regulatory burdens, bureaucracy, or grift--(and they are not wrong) but there are some companies literally financially incentivized to drag projects out for as long as possible! But there is also a cultural problem. I saw it during my NASA prep and in conversations across government--we lack extreme ownership, we take fewer risks and convince ourselves that bold endeavors just can’t be done--at least not on the timelines or costs we used to achieve.
I believe the President and his administration are trying to course correct in an imperfect system--he is setting ambitious goals for Mars, pushing to make nuclear great again, issuing executive orders to accelerate drone adoption, opening up supersonic corridors and empowering leaders to overhaul and unleash the scientific potential of our nation. But efforts like these are easily lost in a sea of polarizing headlines alongside job and budget cuts.
America has long led the world economically, scientifically, militarily--but that won’t continue by default. I am grateful for the companies and their investors trying to seize this moment--I’ll spare the names, but those I have met in commercial space, nuclear startups, automation and robotics, supersonic airliners, eVTOL aircraft and the players disrupting the defense primes are all helping move us in the right direction. Hopefully it happen fast enough, because we can just do big, bold things again."
The woulda, coulda, shoulda leader of NASA. Thanks, Elon, for continually rubbing Trump the wrong way with the BBB and apparently generating in him the paranoia that he might be installing another rebellious troublemaker in that position. ("Arrg! He was suggested by Musk himself! Suggested by Musk himself! Arrg!")
Bloomberg is reporting that "according to a person familiar with the matter" Jared Isaacman and President Trump met "in recent weeks" to discuss reviving Jared's nomination to lead NASA.
(Oct 9, 2025 09:10 PM)Syne Wrote: If so, that would seem to verify that pulling his nomination was more about Elon.
Yeah, looks like it. Maybe now that President Trump and Elon seem to have patched things up, maybe Trump's problems with Jared have evaporated as well.
CNBC is also hearing that Jared met with President Trump recently.
May 1, 2025 12:30 AM
(This post was last modified: May 1, 2025 01:47 AM by Yazata.)
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