Astronaut trump? Ivanka says she wanted to go into space during a visit to NASA

Ivanka Trump and US Senator Ted Cruz visit the NASA Johnson Space Center in Texas with astronaut Nicole Mann.

(Loren Elliott / Reuters / Newscom)

While Ivanka Trump holds a senior position advising her father, the President of the United States, she said Thursday, Sept. 20 to the crew of Expedition 56 of the International Space Station that She had different ambitions in her childhood.

"I think I can speak for all of us here to say that you inspire us all, you actually have the job of my dreams," she told the team via a video call from the control center from NASA. "I've always wanted to be an astronaut and I've always wanted to go in. You're fulfilling my dream up there."

Trump made his comments during a tour of NASA's Johnson Space Center with astronaut Nicole Mann, one of the crew recently selected for future missions in commercial vehicles. Mann, along with astronauts Christopher Ferguson and Eric Boe, will launch the first test flight of Boeing Starliner. The official flight date has not been fixed yet, but NASA hopes to launch commercial flights next year.

Republican Republican Ted Cruz, who represents Texas, NASA State, accompanies the first 36-year-old girl. Images from the tour showed Trump looking at space suits, crossing a large simulator and admiring a miniature model of the space station.

"The International Space Station is certainly a great collaboration in space and it's an amazing collaboration," said NASA astronaut Drew Feustel, who commands the Expedition 56 crew during his call. "We look forward to continuing our operations together, internationally and cooperatively."

Trump also met with Holly Ridings, who this week became the first woman in NASA history to hold the position of Senior Flight Director, according to the Daily Mail. Later, Trump met with local high school students who participate in robotics competitions under the direction of NASA engineers.

Trump's father, President Donald Trump, has made high-level space decisions over the past year. He officially swore in Jim Bridenstine as NASA's director in August, nearly a year after he first appointed him to Congress. Bridenstine had trouble getting votes in the US Senate and his appointment was delayed for months; Government officials cited a number of reservations regarding the appointment of Bridenstine, such as his earlier comments on climate change and LGBTQ issues.

President Trump announced in June that he wanted to put in place a "space force" to protect US space infrastructure. And in December 2017, the president ordered NASA to send its crews on the moon over the next decade, rather than directly targeting Mars, the previous administration's political direction.

Original article on Space.com.