Jared Isaacman testifies at the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation during a nominations hearing to be Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). President Trump picked Isaacman to lead NASA, selecting a billionaire private astronaut and business associate of Elon Musk to oversee an agency closely linked to the SpaceX founder's business.

Entrepreneur Jared Isaacman may experience a little bit of déjà vu on Capital Hill this week.

The billionaire space traveler – President Donald Trump's pick to lead NASA – is due back in the halls of Congress to again meet with U.S. senators who are part of a committee that first questioned Isaacman in April. That was when Isaacman was on the cusp of getting the congressional green light he needed to take over the world's largest space agency.

But then, Trump changed his mind at the end of May and axed Isaacman's NASA bid.

Now, Isaacman is once again the top contender to step into the role of NASA administrator after Trump’s change of heart. And his next step on the path to the job is to appear for a hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee.

Want to see what Isaacman has to say this time around? Here's what to know about the hearing and how you can watch a livestream.

Senate to hold hearing for Jared Isaacman's NASA re-nomination

Isaacman faces a second confirmation hearing before the same committee that in April had voted to pave the way for a full Senate vote on his first nomination to be NASA administrator.

Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas, who chairs the Senate Commerce Committee, will lead the hearing.

How to watch Jared Isaacman NASA confirmation hearing

The hearing will begin at 10 a.m. ET Wednesday, Dec. 3, and will stream live on the Senate committee website and YouTube page.

Could Senate fast-track Isaacman confirmation vote?

Before the confirmation hearing, the Commerce Committee has also already scheduled a vote on Isaacman's renomination.

The committee announced Dec. 1 that it will hold an executive session on Monday, Dec. 8, to vote on several nominations, including Isaacman’s, according to Reuters. If Isaacman clears the committee, his nomination would be considered by the full Senate.

Isaacman is poised to take over an agency that is facing looming historic budget cuts as it prepares for its first human moon missions in more than 50 years under the Artemis program.

NASA has lacked a fulltime administrator since January. If confirmed, Isaacman would officially succeed Bill Nelson, former President Joe Biden’s pick for NASA administrator and a former astronaut and Democratic U.S. senator from Florida.

Trump nominates Isaacman to lead NASA – again

Trump, who first announced Isaacman’s NASA bid in a December 2024 post on Truth Social, suddenly pulled the nomination at the end of May. The decision came amid a tense public feud with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, the world's richest man and a close associate of Isaacman.

Trump then appointed U.S Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in July to perform double duty by also leading NASA as the acting administrator.

Trump renominated Isaacman in November by saying on Truth Social that he is "ideally suited to lead NASA into a bold new Era.”

Isaacman thanked Trump on social media and vowed that NASA, under his leadership, will “inspire the world once again.”

Who is Jared Isaacman? Billionaire has been to space twice

Isaacman, 42, famously dropped out of school at 16 to start his internet payment processing company Shift4 Payments, which is how he amassed his fortune.

Isaacman, an experienced aviator, has also been to space twice – both private missions that he helped fund that launched from the Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral, Florida.

His first journey came in 2021, when he was commander of a first-of-its-kind mission known as Inspiration4.

Isaacman then returned to space in September 2024 with an all-civilian crew of amateur spacefarers on a mission known as Polaris Dawn that he jointly funded with SpaceX. During the five-day spaceflight, Isaacman and his crew of three reached a historically high altitude on a SpaceX Dragon and also performed the first-ever commercial spacewalk.

Contributing: Brooke Edwards, FLORIDA TODAY; Reuters

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will Jared Isaacman be NASA's next administrator? How to watch hearing

Reporting by Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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