Colonel William A. Phillips

James Frederick Bridenstine (born June 15, 1975) is an American military officer and politician who served as the 13th administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Bridenstine was the United States representative for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district, based in Tulsa from January 3, 2013, to April 23, 2018. He is a member of the Republican Party. Bridenstine currently works in the private sector and holds positions at Voyager Space Holdings, Viasat, Acorn Growth Companies and Firefly Aerospace.

On September 1, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Bridenstine to be the Administrator of NASA; he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 19, 2018, by a party-line vote of 50–49. Bridenstine was on the Committee on Science, Space and Technology during his time in Congress. He is the first elected official to be appointed NASA Administrator.[1]

Bridenstine stepped down as the head of NASA on January 20, 2021, to make way for a new leader in the Biden Administration.[2] Former Senator and astronaut Bill Nelson was announced on March 19, 2021, as his chosen successor.[3]

Early life and education

Bridenstine was born on June 15, 1975, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.[4] He grew up in Arlington, Texas, the son of an elementary school teacher and an accountant,[5] where he became an Eagle Scout.

His family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma, during his junior year of high school, and during his senior year he was captain of the Jenks High School swim team and Oklahoma Swimmer of the Year;[5] as of mid-2016, was one of a team of four that held the Oklahoma state record in the 200-meter freestyle relay for age group 17–18.[6]

Bridenstine graduated from Jenks High School in 1993,[7] and earned a scholarship to Rice University in Houston, Texas, but injured his shoulder during his second year; he took five years to graduate,[5] in 1998. He triple majored with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Psychology, and Business. He later received a Master's in Business Administration from Cornell University,[8] awarded in 2009.[9]

Early career

Bridenstine joined the Navy in May 1998,[10] after graduating from Rice University.[5] He was a Naval Aviator in both the active duty United States Navy and the United States Naval Reserve. He flew the E-2C Hawkeye aircraft as part of a carrier air wing with the U.S. Navy and in Central and South America in support of the War on Drugs with the Naval Reserve. He later moved to the F/A-18 Hornet and flew at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center, in Nevada[11]

In 2006, Bridenstine bought stock in the Rocket Racing League (RRL),[12] which planned to begin races in 2008. In January 2007, he met with Tulsa city officials, asking for support for establishing a team in that city,[7] and later in 2007 he invested in an RRL team.[12]

In 2007, after the end of his active duty in the Navy, Bridenstine moved to Orlando, Florida, where he worked at Wyle Laboratories, a defense consulting firm.[9] In 2008, Bridenstine and his family moved back to Tulsa to be closer to his family,[5] and he became the chief pilot for the Tulsa team of the RRL.[13]

In December 2008, Bridenstine became the executive director of the Tulsa Air and Space Museum.[10] In November 2009, he proposed to the head of RRL that the league put on an air show in Tulsa,[12] and in February 2010 the museum announced that it would partner with RRL for the show.[14] The April 2010 show attracted around 40,000 spectators,[15] but lost $330,000, and overall fundraising events for the museum for 2010 lost $400,000.[5] Bridenstine left the executive director's position in August 2010, along with the museum's financial controller and the director of marketing.[16]

In 2010, Bridenstine began serving in the Navy Reserve. In 2015, two years after become a U.S. Representative, he transferred his Reserve commission and joined the Oklahoma Air National Guard.[17]

U.S. House of Representatives

Bridenstine's official congressional portrait, 2013

Elections

2012

In September 2011, Bridenstine launched a campaign to unseat five-term incumbent U.S. Congressman John Sullivan. Bridenstine won the June 2012 Republican primary election with 54% of the vote. Although he identified with the Tea Party and was perceived as running to Sullivan's right, Bridenstine's actual policy statements differed little from those of Sullivan.[18][19][20][21]

Bridenstine had effectively clinched a seat in Congress by ousting Sullivan in the Republican primary. The 1st is a heavily Republican district with a Cook Partisan Voting Index of R+16, and has been in Republican hands since 1987. In the November 2012 general election, Bridenstine defeated Democratic nominee John Olson 63%–32%, winning all five counties in the district.[22]

2014

Bridenstine ran unopposed in the 2014 election. His top campaign contributors were Northrop Grumman, Latshaw Drilling, American Optometric Association, Citizens United and the Every Republican is Crucial Political Action Committee.[23] He received $29,000 from donors associated with the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians and the Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan (AFAZ), per an analysis of OpenSecrets.[24]

2016

Bridenstine retained his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2016 election.[25] Following the 2016 presidential election, Bridenstine was viewed as a possible candidate for either NASA administrator or Secretary of the Air Force under the Donald Trump administration.[26] Bridenstine had already declared that he would not run for re-election in 2018 after making a three-term pledge.[27]

Committee assignments

Bridenstine sat on the Committee on Armed Services and Committee on Science, Space and Technology during the 113th,[28] 114th,[29] and 115th Congresses.[30]

Within the Armed Services Committee, Bridenstine has sat on the Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces[31] and Subcommittee on Strategic Forces.[32] Within the Science Committee, Bridenstine has sat on the Subcommittee on Environment (Chairman)[33] and Subcommittee on Space.[34] He is a member of the Freedom Caucus[35] and the House Baltic Caucus.[36]

Ethics investigation

Bridenstine's amendment to the defense appropriations bill came following a visit to Baku upon invitation of the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic for ten members of Congress and 32 staff members; the visit became the subject of an ethics investigation.[37] The members received numerous gifts during the trip totaling thousands of dollars in value. In 2013, Bridenstine returned two of the gifts (a pair of rugs worth several thousand dollars) to the donor; he had been the only lawmaker to disclose gifts from the trip on his financial disclosure forms.[37] In 2015, he turned over remaining gifts received during the trip to the House Clerk, around the time that a watchdog report that indicated that the source of the funding for the trip had not been properly declared.[38] The OCE and House Ethics committee found that lawmakers and aides had no way of knowing that the trip was funded improperly.[38]

NASA administrator

Bridenstine is sworn in as NASA's thirteenth administrator by Vice President Mike Pence (2018).

Nomination

On September 1, 2017, the White House announced that Bridenstine was President Donald Trump's preferred pick to head NASA. The choice was quickly criticized by both Republican and Democratic politicians, saying that NASA should be headed by a "space professional", not a politician or a Trump ally.[39] Critics drew attention to Bridenstine's lack of formal qualifications in science or engineering, unlike previous appointees to that post.[40][41] Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio said that Bridenstine's political history could prove controversial and delay the confirmation process, saying "I just think it could be devastating for the space program", while Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, also of Florida and a former Payload Specialist for NASA who flew on STS-61-C, said "The head of NASA ought to be a space professional, not a politician."[42][41] Nelson himself would be nominated to lead NASA by President Biden in 2021.

CNN found that Bridenstine's Facebook, YouTube and Twitter accounts had been entirely deleted, while most of the interviews on his Soundcloud were deleted, at a time when Congress would be examining his record for his confirmation hearing.[43]

Bridenstine has criticized NASA spending on climate science and has supported increased privatization of U.S. civil and military space activities.[40] According to NPR, Bridenstine's past climate change denial views "are sure to alarm scientists, because NASA conducts a huge amount of the global research on climate change."[44] NASA finds that climate-warming trends are "extremely likely due to human activities" and has written on its website that "the small amount of dissent tends to come from a few vocal scientists who are not experts in the climate field or do not understand the scientific basis of long-term climate processes".[45] Since his confirmation, Bridenstine has said that he agrees with the scientific consensus around human contributions to climate change.[46]

Eric Stallmer, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, said he was "very impressed with [Bridenstine's] deep knowledge of space technology issues and his record of strong leadership in promoting positive change."[47] The decision to pick Bridenstine was also praised by Senator Ted Cruz.[48]

According to Science Magazine, "many expect that Bridenstine, who has written about the commercial potential of exploiting lunar resources, could shift the agency's emphasis [from its long-term mission of sending humans to Mars] toward the moon."[39] ABC News wrote that Bridenstine was in favor of both human missions to the Moon and Mars.[45][49]

The U.S. Senate confirmed Bridenstine on April 19, 2018, by a party-line vote of 50–49.[50][51][52] He became the first member of Congress to lead NASA.[45] Bridenstine was sworn in by Vice President Mike Pence at the NASA Headquarters building in Washington, D.C. on April 23, 2018.[53][54][55]

Space Launch System

Bridenstine speaking in front of the SLS Core for the Artemis 1 mission (2019)

In March 2019, Mike Pence pushed NASA to land humans on the Moon in 2024 instead of the initially planned 2028.[56] Bridenstine stated that for it to happen, the Space Launch System would need to be accelerated, along with various other aspects such as the LOP-G, an orbiting space station around the Moon. Bridenstine also considered commercial Heavy-Lift rockets such as the Delta IV Heavy or Falcon Heavy. The idea was scrapped due to the logistical issue of docking an Orion and a European Service Module and the aerodynamics of using a Falcon Heavy.[57]

Private space companies

Bridenstine, Elon Musk and NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley in front of the Crew Dragon capsule Endeavour as it was being prepared for the Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission (2019)

Bridenstine established a working relationship with SpaceX CEO and Founder Elon Musk. Following the DM-1 mission in March 2019, Musk posited the need for humans to have a base on the Moon, to which Bridenstine responded, "that's the goal."[57]

Artemis program

Bridenstine played a huge role in implementing President Trump's Space Policy Directive One and developed the planned architecture for a return to the Moon. Bridenstine later named the program the Artemis program. Bridenstine also decided that the lunar lander for the Artemis program would be developed commercially similar to the model used for NASA's Commercial Crew Program.[2][58]

Post-public career

Following the end of his tenure as NASA Administrator, Bridenstine returned to his hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma. On January 25, 2021, Acorn Growth Companies announced that he was hired as a dedicated senior advisor.[59]

On April 1, 2021, Bridenstine joined the board of directors of satellite operator Viasat in his second private sector role since stepping down as NASA's administrator.[60]

On April 7, 2021, Denver-based Voyager Space Holdings, which has been buying businesses to build a vertically integrated space exploration company, announced they had appointed Bridenstine to chair its advisory board. Dylan Taylor, chairman and CEO of Voyager, said Bridenstine's expertise would help guide the company's "aggressive and ambitious growth plan."[61]

Bridenstine joined the board of directors for Starlab Space, a joint venture of Voyager Space and Airbus, in January, 2024.[62]

As of 2024, Bridenstine serves on the advisory board of the National Security Space Association.[63]

Political positions

While in Congress, Bridenstine was a member of the House Freedom Caucus.[35]

Space

Bridenstine focused heavily on space policy during his tenure in Congress, stating "[o]ur very way of life depends on space, the way we communicate, the way we navigate, the way we produce food and energy, the way we conduct banking."[64] In April 2016 at the 32nd Annual Space Symposium, Bridenstine introduced H.R. 4945, the American Space Renaissance Act, comprehensive reform legislation with provisions affecting national security, civil, and commercial space policy.[65]

In addition, Bridenstine proposed legislation related to the regulatory process overseeing certain non-traditional space activities,[66] and helped secure funding for the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Commercial Space Transportation.[66][67] Recognizing his efforts, in 2015 SpaceNews named Bridenstine as one of five game changers in the world in space.[67]

Environment and climate

Before becoming the chief administrator of NASA, Bridenstine rejected the scientific consensus behind global climate change[42][44][48] and in a 2013 speech on the House floor stated that global temperatures stopped rising ten years earlier.[48] Bridenstine criticized the Obama administration for spending "30 times as much money" on climate science as on weather forecasting. PolitiFact says of this claim that "Bridenstine does have a point that climate change research exceeds weather forecasting expenditures, but he’s overstated the discrepancy," and they rate the assertion as "mostly false".[68]

In the 114th Congress, Bridenstine was the Chairman of the Environment Subcommittee of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.[69] In that role, he pushed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration "... to integrate commercial data into its weather forecasting models."[67] In September 2016, NOAA awarded two contracts to private weather satellite firms to provide data for its use.[70]

In 2017, Bridenstine supported James Langevin's legislation requiring the Defense Department to report on the effects of climate change on military installations and strategic battle plans.[71] According to journalist Keith Cowing, Bridenstine's support for the Langevin amendment "was widely seen as being instrumental in its passage."[72]

By May 2018, Bridenstine had reversed his public position on climate change. At a town hall meeting in Washington D.C., Bridenstine said that "I fully believe and know that the climate is changing. I also know that we humans beings are contributing to it in a major way. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas. We're putting it into the atmosphere in volumes that we haven't seen, and that greenhouse gas is warming the planet. That is absolutely happening, and we are responsible for it."[46]

Personal life

On November 6, 2004, in Fort Worth, Texas, Bridenstine married Michelle Deanne Ivory.[9]

References

  1. ^ Chang, Kenneth (April 19, 2018). "Trump's NASA Nominee, Jim Bridenstine, Confirmed by Senate on Party-Line Vote". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 19, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Berger, Eric (November 11, 2020). "Jim Bridenstine is leaving NASA. How should we assess his 30-month tenure?". Ars Technica. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  3. ^ "President Biden Announces his Intent to Nominate Bill Nelson for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration". The White House. March 19, 2021. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  4. ^ "BRIDENSTINE, Jim". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. United States Congress. Archived from the original on December 14, 2016. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Wall, Holly (October 31, 2012). "Rocket to the Moon". This Land. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  6. ^ "Oklahoma Swimming Records" (PDF). teamunify.com. April 9, 2016. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 7, 2016. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
  7. ^ a b Enzor, Miranda (March 14, 2007). "Jenks Graduate Joins Rocket Racing League". GTR Newspapers. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  8. ^ Jones, David (April 24, 2012). "Jim Bridenstine a Challenger for Dist. 1". Gtrnews.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
  9. ^ a b c "Bridenstine, James Frederick". The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  10. ^ a b "People Spotlight: Jim Bridenstine". Tulsa World. December 21, 2008. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  11. ^ "NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine". April 23, 2018. Archived from the original on April 26, 2018. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  12. ^ a b c Gleason, Matt (May 2, 2010). "Rocketman: Space museum head sees dreams flying into reality". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  13. ^ Schwartz, John (July 30, 2008). "League Makes Test Run at Several Hundred Feet (Published 2008)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  14. ^ "Tulsa Air and Space Museum Announces First QuikTrip Air & Rocket Racing Show | Aero-News Network". www.aero-news.net. February 17, 2010. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  15. ^ Foust, Jeff (April 26, 2010). "The Space Review: Rocket racers, shuttles, and Tulsa". www.thespacereview.com. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  16. ^ Schwellenbach, Nick; Zagorin, Adam (April 18, 2018). "How Trump's NASA Nominee Used a Nonprofit He Ran to Benefit Himself". The Daily Beast. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  17. ^ Bell, Megan (April 19, 2018). "Senate confirms Rep. Jim Bridenstine as NASA Administrator". KTUL. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
  18. ^ "Tea Party favorite Bridenstine defeats incumbent Sullivan in Oklahoma House race". Fox News. June 27, 2012. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  19. ^ "Five-Term Oklahoma Congressman Sullivan Suffers Primary Defeat". KOTV. June 26, 2012. Archived from the original on June 30, 2012. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
  20. ^ Dan Phillips (June 27, 2012). "Bridenstine Defeats Incumbent Sullivan In Primary". KTUL. Archived from the original on July 2, 2012. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
  21. ^ SEAN MURPHY, Associated Press (June 27, 2012). "Navy pilot upsets 5-term Oklahoma congressman". SFGate. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
  22. ^ "Our Campaigns – OK – District 01 Race – Nov 06, 2012". www.ourcampaigns.com. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved February 24, 2013.
  23. ^ "James Bridenstine top 20 Contributors, 2013–2014". OpenSecrets. May 28, 2015. Archived from the original on November 7, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  24. ^ "James Bridenstine top 100 Contributors, 2013–2014". OpenSecrets. May 28, 2015. Archived from the original on May 29, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
  25. ^ Murphy, Sean (June 28, 2016). "3 incumbent GOP state legislators lose primaries". The Washington Times. AP. Archived from the original on September 7, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  26. ^ "NASA Administrator Bridenstine? His name's in the mix for Trump's space team". Space News. November 11, 2016. Archived from the original on November 23, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2016.
  27. ^ "Coburn will work to oust Mullin after congressman breaks term limit pledge". News OK. July 8, 2017. Archived from the original on September 14, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
  28. ^ Official List of Standing Committee & Subcommittees for the 113th Congress Archived December 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine.
  29. ^ "Official Alphabetical List of Members with Committee Assignments for the 114th Congress". Archived from the original on September 19, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  30. ^ Official alphabetical list of the House of Representatives of the United States One Hundred Fifteenth Congress Archived May 9, 2015, at the Wayback Machine (September 1, 2017).
  31. ^ "Seapower and Projection Forces (114th Congress)". Armed Services Republicans. Archived from the original on November 30, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  32. ^ "Strategic Forces (114th Congress)". Armed Services Republicans. Archived from the original on November 30, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  33. ^ "Subcommittee on Environment (114th Congress)". Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. Archived from the original on November 29, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  34. ^ "Subcommittee on Space (114th Congress)". Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. Archived from the original on November 29, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  35. ^ a b "What is the House Freedom Caucus, and who's in it?". Pew research center. October 20, 2015. Archived from the original on July 3, 2018. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  36. ^ "Members". House Baltic Caucus. Archived from the original on February 21, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  37. ^ a b Higham, Scott; Rich, Stephen; Crites, Alice (May 13, 2015). "10 members of Congress took trip secretly funded by foreign government". Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 3, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  38. ^ a b Dickson, Rebecca (June 16, 2016). "Lawmakers turned over gifts after secretly funded trip to Azerbaijan". TheHill. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017. Retrieved September 7, 2017.
  39. ^ a b "Trump has picked a politician to lead NASA. Is that a good thing?". Science | AAAS. September 1, 2017. Archived from the original on September 9, 2017. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  40. ^ a b Chang, Kenneth (September 2, 2017). "Jim Bridenstine to Be Nominated by Trump to Lead NASA". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  41. ^ a b Green, Miranda. "Senators oppose Trump's pick to head NASA". CNN. Archived from the original on September 14, 2017. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
  42. ^ a b Persio, Sofia Lotto "Why Donald Trump's NASA Chief Pick is a Controversial Choice" Archived September 3, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, Newsweek, September 2, 2017, Retrieved September 2, 2017
  43. ^ Andrew Kaczynski (September 7, 2017). "Parts of Trump NASA pick's online presence scrubbed". CNN. Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  44. ^ a b "Trump Picks Oklahoma Congressman To Head NASA". NPR.org. Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  45. ^ a b c "Trump pick to head NASA faces fight over climate comments". ABC News. Archived from the original on September 15, 2017. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  46. ^ a b Koren, Marina (May 17, 2018). "Trump's NASA Chief: 'I Fully Believe and Know the Climate Is Changing'". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on May 18, 2018. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  47. ^ Foust, Jeff (September 3, 2017). "Bridenstine faces obstacles to Senate confirmation". SpaceNews. Archived from the original on September 6, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2017.
  48. ^ a b c Ben Guarino, Trump nominates Oklahoma politician and climate skeptic to run NASA Archived September 7, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, Washington Post (September 5, 2017).
  49. ^ "Trump's pick for NASA lays out agenda and answers critics". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on September 20, 2017. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
  50. ^ Cama, Timothy (April 19, 2018). "Senate Confirms Trump's Pick to Lead NASA". The Hill. Archived from the original on April 21, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  51. ^ Chang, Kenneth (April 19, 2018). "Trump's NASA Nominee, Jim Bridenstine, Confirmed by Senate on Party-Line Vote". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 20, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  52. ^ Andrews, Natalie; Pasztor, Andy (April 19, 2018). "Senate Confirms James Bridenstine to Lead NASA". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on April 20, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  53. ^ Foust, Jeff (April 23, 2018). "Bridenstine Sworn in as NASA Administrator". SpaceNews. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  54. ^ King, Ledyard (April 23, 2018). "After Bruising Nomination Fight, NASA Administrator James Bridenstine Facing More Challenges". USA Today. Archived from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  55. ^ Harwood, William (April 23, 2018). "Jim Bridenstine Sworn in as NASA Administrator". CBS News. Archived from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  56. ^ "Pence calls for human return to the moon by 2024". SpaceNews.com. March 26, 2019. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  57. ^ a b Berger, Eric (April 1, 2019). "NASA chief says a Falcon Heavy rocket could fly humans to the Moon". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on July 17, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  58. ^ Roulette, Joey (January 20, 2021). "As parting message, Jim Bridenstine leaves Artemis program 'in good shape' for Biden's NASA". The Verge. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  59. ^ "NASA Administrator joins Acorn Growth Companies". acorngrowthcompanies.com. January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  60. ^ "NASA Administrator joins Acorn Growth Companies". spacenews.com. April 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  61. ^ "Former NASA administrator advising acquisition-hungry Voyager Space Holdings". spacenews.com. April 7, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  62. ^ "Former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine Joins Starlab Space Board of Directors". Yahoo Finance. January 11, 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
  63. ^ "National Security Space Association, Board of Advisors". National Security Space Association. March 14, 2024. Archived from the original on March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  64. ^ "Why Congress's newest space advocate says the U.S. faces a 'Sputnik moment'". Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  65. ^ "Bridenstine introduces American Space Renaissance Act - SpaceNews.com". SpaceNews.com. April 13, 2016. Archived from the original on April 28, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  66. ^ a b "Proposed legislation would close commercial space regulatory gap - SpaceNews.com". SpaceNews.com. September 15, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  67. ^ a b c "5 Space Leaders Making a Difference - SpaceNews.com". SpaceNews.com. August 25, 2015. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  68. ^ "Jim Bridenstine: U.S. spends 30 times as much on climate change research as on weather forecasting". @politifact. Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  69. ^ "Subcommittee on Environment (114th Congress)". Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. Archived from the original on November 29, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  70. ^ "Two companies win first NOAA commercial weather contracts - SpaceNews.com". SpaceNews.com. September 15, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  71. ^ Welna, David (July 10, 2017). "House Poised To Approve National Defense Authorization Bill". NPR. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
  72. ^ Cowing, Keith (September 15, 2017). "Bridenstine's Climate Record Is Different Than You Thought". NASA Watch. SpacRef Interactive. Retrieved November 5, 2017.

External links

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Oklahoma's 1st congressional district

2013–2018
Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by 13th Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
2018–2021
Succeeded by
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byas Former US Representative Order of precedence of the United States
as Former US Representative
Succeeded byas Former US Representative