Bill Nelson: podcast appearances and interviews

Bill Nelson is the former chairman and CEO of Pacesetter Planning. He has a background as an American politician and former astronaut. Nelson served as a United States senator from Florida from 2001 to 2019 and was appointed as the administrator of NASA from 2021 to 2025. Before his time in the Senate, Nelson represented Florida's Space Coast in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1979 to 1991 and was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1972 to 1978. During his tenure in Congress, he became the second sitting member to fly in space when he served as a payload specialist on Space Shuttle Columbia mission STS-61-C in 1986. Nelson served in the United States Army Reserve during the Vietnam War and later worked as Florida's Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner, and Fire Marshal from 1995 to 2001. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000, winning with 51 percent of the vote, and was subsequently re-elected in 2006 and 2012. Nelson ran unsuccessfully for a fourth term in 2018, narrowly losing to Rick Scott. He was appointed to NASA's advisory council in 2019 and was confirmed as NASA Administrator in 2021, serving until January 20, 2025. As a senator, Nelson was considered a centrist and moderate Democrat, supporting policies such as same-sex marriage, tax relief for lower and middle-income families, environmental protections, the Affordable Care Act, and Medicaid expansion. During his Senate career, he chaired the Senate Aging Committee and served as ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee.