Pres. Biden is reportedly considering a former Florida Senator to head up NASA.
When Bill Nelson was in the U.S. House in the 1980's, he represented Brevard County, home of Cape Canavarel and the Kennedy Space Center. It was during that time that Nelson flew on a Space Shuttle mission.
But while he is familiar with the space agency, the Democrat is also a former politician. If he is offered, and decides to take the position of NASA administrator, Nelson would be doing what he publicly opposed when Pres. Trump appointed former Republican Congressman Jim Bridenstine to run NASA in 2017.
At the time, Nelson claimed NASA needed a space professional. His words during Bridenstine's confirmation hearing in the U.S. Senate:
“The NASA administrator should be a consummate professional who is technically and scientifically competent and a skilled executive. More importantly, the administrator must be a leader who has the ability to unite scientists, engineers, commercial space interests, policy makers and the public on a shared vision for future space exploration.”
Bridenstine later referred to Nelson as "an astronaut," when he tweeted in 2019 that he was recruiting the former Senator to the NASA Advisory Committee, a panel of experts that offers helpful suggestions for the space agency.
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