Trump removes his pick to lead NASA after discovering his ties to the Democratic Party.

US President Donald Trump announced Saturday night that he is withdrawing his nomination of astronaut Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, after a thorough review of his "prior associations." has stated that he will soon propose a new name for the position. Isaacman has been to space twice on private missions with Space X and maintains close ties with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who left the Trump administration this week.

Isaacman had secured approval from the Senate Commerce Committee and was preparing for a full Senate vote next week. However, Trump's about-face appears to be motivated by more political reasons. And Isaacman no longer has Musk to back him up.

"After a thorough review of my previous associations, I am withdrawing Jared Isaacman's nomination to lead NASA. I will soon announce a new nominee who will be mission-aligned and prioritize America in space. Thank you for your attention! " the president said in a brief statement on his social media platform, Truth Social.

Moments later , Isaacman expressed his gratitude via X for the support he received from the Trump Administration . He expressed his hope that the agency will be led by "an administrator willing to reorganize, rebuild, and bring together the brightest and best minds to generate the world-changing headlines NASA was created to deliver."

The astronaut has described the six months since his nomination as "enriching and truly exciting" and has defended that, despite the "turbulence", "there are many competent and dedicated people who love (the US) and care deeply about the mission (...) of the most successful agency in the world ." "I will always be grateful for this opportunity and will cheer on our president and NASA as they guide us on the greatest adventure in human history," concluded the former candidate to lead the agency, without revealing the reasons behind this announcement.

On behalf of the Trump administration, White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said on Saturday that it was essential that the next NASA leader "be fully aligned with the president's 'America First' agenda."

It was in December 2024 that the US president nominated Isaacman to serve as NASA administrator. He was a perfect fit for the position, according to Musk, a financial technology executive who performed the first private extravehicular activity in orbit . Isaacman is also the founder of Draken International, a supplier of fighter jets, and the founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments, a payments processor.

His vision for the Agency's future was in line with that championed by Trump, who stated at his inauguration in January: "We will follow our manifest destiny to the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the American flag on the planet Mars."

However, recent investigations have revealed what could be the real reason for Trump's decision. Records from OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan organization that tracks money in politics, showed that Isaacman donated to Democrats during the 2024 election. Although , as CNN points out, he also donated to Republicans in previous years. And The New York Times reports that the president learned from people close to his circle that Isaacman had donated to Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, former Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey, and the California Democratic Party.

Despite these allegations, Isaacman had avoided commenting on controversial political issues on social media. At his confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation in April, he said he was "relatively apolitical." An ideal stance if you want to lead the US agency. But Trump's change of course calls into question Isaacman's previous statements.

The Washington Post also reports that Laura Loomer, a right-wing activist influential in the administration , wrote in a post on X that there was reason to believe Isaacman could be facing retaliation because of his friendship with Musk . “If so, this would suggest a coordinated attack on Isaacman to damage ties between President Trump and Elon Musk ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, despite the fact that the two held a meeting and press conference in the Oval Office yesterday where @POTUS praised Elon for his generosity, his work on @DOGE and even gave him a key to the White House,” Loomer wrote.

What's clear is that with this move from the White House, Musk, who was seeking millions in funding from NASA, loses an important leverage that could have supported him. Meanwhile, the government continues to make drastic cuts to NASA . In fact, a 24% reduction is being considered, which would be the lowest since 1961 , adjusted for inflation, according to the Planetary Society.