Washington, June 1: President Donald Trump is withdrawing the nomination of tech billionaire Jared Isaacman, an associate of Elon Musk, to lead NASA, a person familiar with the decision said Saturday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to comment publicly on the administration's personnel decisions. The White House and NASA did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment. ‘Elon Musk Is Terrific’: Donald Trump Gives Tesla CEO Oval Office Sendoff After Quitting as DOGE Chief, Credits Him With ‘Colossal Change’.

Trump announced last December during the presidential transition that he had chosen Isaacman to be the space agency's next administrator. Isaacman has been a close collaborator with Musk ever since he bought his first chartered flight on Musk's SpaceX in 2021. He is the CEO and founder of Shift4, a credit card processing company. He also bought a series of spaceflights from SpaceX and conducted the first private spacewalk. Elon Musk Steps Down from Trump Administration.

Isaacman testified at his Senate confirmation hearing on April 9 and a vote to send his nomination to the full Senate was expected soon. SpaceX is owned by Musk, a Trump supporter and adviser who announced this week that he is leaving the government after several months at the helm of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. Trump created the agency to slash the size of government and put Musk in charge. Semafor was first to report that the White House had decided to pull Isaacman's nomination.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)