Jared Isaacman, again proposed by Trump to head NASA, promises that the US will reach the moon before China
Billionaire Jared Isaacman, a close associate of Elon Musk, appointed by President Donald Trump to take over the leadership of NASA, reaffirmed Wednesday in a hearing in the US Senate that he wants astronauts from the United States to return to the moon before astronauts from China reach the Earth's natural satellite for the first time, reports AFP, according to Agerpres.
“The United States will return to the moon before our great rival, and we will establish a lasting human presence there,” he assured a committee of US senators on Wednesday, nearly eight months after a first hearing.
This second hearing, unusually, came after several resounding changes of heart by the US president regarding Jared Isaacman.
After first appointing him in December 2024 to take over as NASA administrator, Donald Trump withdrew his support in extremis in April 2025, before nominating him again in November 2025. Sean Duffy, the director of the Department of Transportation, was named interim NASA administrator in July 2025.
The decisions came amid heightened tensions this spring between the Republican president and billionaire Elon Musk, who appear to have reconciled in the meantime.
“I'm honored and grateful to stand before you again,” Jared Isaacman said as he found the senators tasked with considering his nomination, as one senator joked that he felt like he was having deja vu.
Objective: The Moon
During this new hearing, the candidate confirmed his commitment to the United States becoming the first country in the world to return astronauts to the moon and then travel to Mars, but he was more cautious about the space program aimed at the “Red Planet”.
Given that he had declared in April that he wanted to give priority to sending astronauts to Mars, Jared Isaacman insisted on Wednesday on the need for the urgent return of American astronauts to the moon.
NASA's Artemis program, which envisages this return, has faced numerous delays in recent years, however. Space experts warned this fall that the moon landing module being developed by Elon Musk's company SpaceX may not be completed on time.
Such a complication would put the United States at risk of being overtaken by China, which aims to send Chinese astronauts to the moon by 2030.
Speaking about the situation, Jared Isaacman said he wanted to avoid it at all costs, insisting that a failure would “call into question the exceptional character of American science beyond our space expertise.”
While the Trump administration seemed open a few months ago to an overhaul of the Artemis program in favor of one aimed at exploring the planet Mars, that prospect seems to be receding today.
Since the spat between the US president and the multi-billionaire Elon Musk, who has an obsession with the “Red Planet”, US authorities have increasingly insisted on their desire to overtake Beijing in what they call the “second space race”.
If confirmed to lead NASA, Jared Isaacman will have to make sure SpaceX delivers that lander on time. Asked about a possible conflict of interest with the head of SpaceX, who is said to be very close, he assured that he only has professional relations with him.
“I'm not here to favor or enrich entrepreneurs for personal purposes,” insisted businessman Jared Isaacman, who in 2024 became the first private astronaut to make an extravehicular exit to Earth's orbit in a private mission led by SpaceX itself.
42-year-old Jared Isaacman is a billionaire who made his fortune in the online payments sector. Despite his closeness to Elon Musk, he is supported by many actors in the space sector, who consider him competent and passionate about space exploration.
