The Big Story

Space industry reels over pulled NASA nomination

The aerospace community was caught off guard this week by President Trump’s withdrawal of tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman’s NASA nomination.

© AP Photo/John Raoux, File

Announced days before the Senate’s likely confirmation of Isaacman, the withdrawal sparked a swirl of rumors and concerns, as budget cuts loom and NASA stretches into its sixth month without a leader.

Trump, in a social media post over the weekend, offered few details but said his decision was made after a “thorough review of prior associations.”

One space policy executive called the reasoning “complete bulls—.”

“That’s like the worst excuse in the world,” said the executive, who was granted anonymity to speak freely about the withdrawal.

Isaacman’s nom

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