Former NASA astronaut Terry Virts introduced his run for a seat within the U.S. Senate on June 23. Since then, his marketing campaign has been working laborious spreading his message and highlighting his values as a candidate and a Texan.
Virts hopes to flip the seat at present held by Sen. John Cornyn (R), who’s up for reelection in 2026. Virts is the primary Democrat to enter what’s prone to be a crowded main discipline, and he is already differentiating himself from what he views as D.C.’s “do-nothing Democrats.”
His background as a retired U.S. Air Power colonel, F-16 pilot and two-time crewmember of the International Space Station (ISS) — the place he additionally served as commander — have formed his worldview and method to management. Virts sat down with Area.com lately to debate his candidacy, imaginative and prescient for Texas and the results that turbulent shifts in America’s present political panorama might have on house coverage and exploration.
This interview has been edited for readability and brevity. A full video of Area.com’s 40-minute dialog with Virts is obtainable on YouTube. The video embedded above covers the questions and solutions included herein.
What’s it that made you determine to run for the Senate now?
“Simply what is going on on on this planet, what is going on on in our nation, this catastrophe from the Trump administration, the chaos and division that is occurring — I simply could not stand by and watch this. I had this second in house. It has been a couple of years. We have been on the Russian phase. We have been having dinner, and we appeared down at Earth, and I stated, ‘You realize what, guys? There’s six of us up right here, and there is over six billion folks over there on that planet.’ The Russians have this large window [from which] you possibly can see [Earth]. I stated, ‘We have been given one thing actually particular.’
“I’ve this sort of philosophy: To these whom a lot has been given, a lot will likely be anticipated.’ And I have been given rather a lot. You realize, fortunately, my nation, the taxpayers have made me an F-16 pilot and a NASA astronaut. I spent seven months in house. So, I have been given rather a lot, and I really feel like this can be a time when issues have gotten so unhealthy that it was time for me to serve once more. So I threw my title within the hat. I do know it is large. I jumped into the deep finish of the pool by operating for U.S. Senate. However I believe the second requires management.”
How does your expertise as an astronaut inform your model of management? and your political worldview?
“Both as a fighter pilot, or a take a look at pilot, or an astronaut, you are a part of a workforce. You do not care about different folks’s politics, you do not care about their faith or their gender or something. You care about getting the mission executed. The truth is, we had a dialog about that with the Russians. I used to be there once they first invaded Ukraine. We might see bombs going off in Ukraine. It was terrible. And I stated, ‘Look, guys, we have to keep alive. We’re in outer house, so we have to give attention to our mission, and we’ll depart politics on Earth for in a while.’ So, that is your job. Your job is to get the mission executed — to resolve the issue. You are not apprehensive about politics. And I believe having that mentality in Washington will likely be actually refreshing.
“I am not going there to be on this workforce to battle the opposite workforce. And that looks like all you hear. Everytime you activate Fox Information, that is fixed. The one factor they discuss is bashing Democrats. Or, on the opposite networks, they only discuss, ‘No matter Trump does is unhealthy,’ and I do not have a look at it that manner. I have a look at like, ‘What’s the issue?’ We have to resolve healthcare. We have to resolve the debt. We have to resolve the worldwide safety concern. How can we resolve that? I am operating as a Democrat, however actually, I am an American first, a Texan second and a common sense Democrat third. So I will method issues as tips on how to resolve them, not tips on how to simply win one for my workforce.”
What’s your tackle the White Home’s proposed NASA price range?
“It’s a catastrophe. You realize, NASA’s price range total is cut by a quarter — that is proposed — and the science budget is cut by half. Right here in Houston — you realize, I am from Houston — it will be a catastrophe. Hundreds and 1000’s of individuals are going to lose their jobs. They’re already having profoundly adverse results on the house station’s science means — the power to do science on the Worldwide Area Station that I helped construct and commanded. They’ll lower vital house probes. I noticed there’s going to be 41 space missions that are canceled. There’s over a dozen house missions which are at present in operation, issues like New Horizons, Juno and others which are costing pennies on the greenback. These items are tremendous low-cost. We have already paid all of the expense. We should always simply maintain them working, and they are going to cancel these. It is only a catastrophe.
“It is actually, actually unhealthy. Lots of people watching Area.com I believe care about house. Please name your congressmen, please name your senators. Please name the White Home and allow them to know that that is ridiculous and also you anticipate one thing higher out of America. It is a catastrophe.”
Do you anticipate these cuts are going to pose a long run threat for the US’ management in house?
“Completely. Look, you possibly can’t begin and cease an area program. Right here in Houston, they’re canceling a number of of a very powerful science ones. As soon as the {hardware} is canceled, as soon as the scientists are gone, you possibly can’t simply begin them up once more. Solar system probes require engineers to know very technical issues, to work for years on a program. When you let somebody go, you are not simply going to get them again. They are going to get employed by another firm, and they are going to transfer on with their life.
“Youngsters who’re at school proper now at Texas A&M, College of Texas, at Rice, you realize, they’re finding out and so they’re pondering, ‘OK, do I am going work at NASA? Do I am going work within the aerospace trade? Do I am going to Silicon Valley to develop a brand new app?’ The will to go work at NASA goes to be lower than it as soon as was once they see this chaos. So the issue isn’t just, within the brief time period we’re shedding these missions. The issue’s in the long run. There’s going to be actual harm executed to our nationwide safety.
“What we have actually been missing is a coherent imaginative and prescient that’s bipartisan, that everyone agrees on. There’s been fully an excessive amount of politicization of our house exploration program. That is insane. Republicans and Democrats and Independents usually, for essentially the most half, love house exploration. And so I believe it comes again to finish lack of imaginative and prescient. And this goes again to the chaos that’s Donald Trump. At any time when his neurons fireplace, he says the mobile device factor, and this chaos going backwards and forwards shouldn’t be a approach to run an area program.”
What’s your notion of morale at NASA proper now?
“Morale has by no means been decrease. NASA has at all times [been] voted the highest, or one of many high companies to work at within the authorities. It was an ideal place. A number of the finest folks I’ve ever met work at NASA. They’re superior. And morale has by no means been decrease.
“Even once they canceled the Constellation program, which was a reasonably low level in 2010; even when the Columbia accident occurred, that was horrible, it was a tragedy, however we knew we have been working in direction of one thing higher. So, proper now, it simply seems like they’re not valued. They’re being advised, ‘Please depart the federal government.’
“I’ve a number of buddies that I’ve talked to which are taking these early outs that Elon Musk supplied to federal workers to please depart the federal government. They have been going to retire anyway. These are those that have been actually on their manner out anyway. They only bought a couple of months of free pay. So this genius ‘do away with authorities workers’ plan is simply losing authorities cash. With the position that Elon Musk had at DOGE, the issue is, he had absolute energy over seemingly your complete American authorities.
“And the actual basic downside: Elon Musk donated $300 million to the Trump marketing campaign, and all the sudden, he is given the keys to the US authorities. He is incomes billions and tens of billions of dollars-worth of presidency contracts. He is given all of the perception into the federal authorities. His A.I. firm is given all the info of the US authorities. We do not even know the harm that is been executed to the privateness of Americans. So the corruption that is occurred can’t be overstated. I imply, the corruption that is occurred on this Trump administration provides the phrase ‘corruption’ a foul title.
“Think about in your ethics coaching, if query 1 was, ‘Are you allowed to offer the president lots of of hundreds of thousands of {dollars},’ after which, ‘Is he allowed to offer you billions of {dollars} value of contracts?’ Like, in fact that is unethical. In fact it is a battle of curiosity. In fact it should not be occurring, and naturally it’s occurring. So it is laborious to believe in what NASA is doing with this degree of corruption and battle of curiosity.”
Is the harm executed to NASA irreparable?
“No, nothing is ever irreparable. It may be solved. It may be fastened, however it will require management in Congress. Proper now, what I see from John Cornyn, our senator in Texas, is only a rubber stamp. No matter Trump does, he approves. It is essentially the most disgusting factor — prostrating himself. So it will require management from Congress to say, ‘No, this isn’t what we’re doing. We will correctly fund our house program. We worth the scientists and engineers and astronauts that work there, and the identical factor for all the opposite authorities companies.’ It is going to require management within the Senate. Proper now, that management is missing.”
I am launching a marketing campaign for U.S. Senate. I am in search of to serve Texas as a result of I really like my nation—I imagine in its beliefs and values. I am an Air Power Colonel and an astronaut, however actually, I am an American first, a Texan second, and a common sense Democrat third. It is time for change. pic.twitter.com/OBHL1QjkZxJune 23, 2025
How do you envision holding exploration efforts insulated from political swings like what we’re experiencing now?
“Once I’m within the Senate, right here in Texas, the very first thing I will do is, I will go discuss to Ted Cruz. Ted and I most likely do not agree on very a lot, however I need to discuss to him and say, ‘Ted, what can we do to assist Texas out? What can we do? How can we work collectively to assist the nation out?’ I believe house exploration is a kind of issues. To have a coherent imaginative and prescient and plan for NASA, and actually all of our science — Nationwide Institute of Well being, Nationwide Science Basis and others — you must have a bipartisan settlement. These items aren’t political.
“We are able to battle all day on immigration. Let’s battle all day on tax cuts for billionaires and on supporting Russia as an alternative of Ukraine. We are able to have that battle. However for house exploration, we have to work collectively and we have to take the Democrat hat off, put the American hat on, and work collectively. In order that’s going to be the very first thing that I need to do as a U.S. senator.”
Elon Musk has a large presence in Texas. How do you propose to navigate that relationship?
“So to begin with, I need to say hats off to SpaceX. They’re wonderful. You realize, they have been offering cargo to the house station for over a decade. They have been launching our astronauts now for a number of years. The truth is, they’re the one American-approved resolution for launching astronauts proper now. Hopefully Boeing will get in the mix, however SpaceX has executed wonderful issues. The Falcon 9 has mainly dominated the worldwide launch trade. The Falcon Heavy is basically the premier heavy-lift automobile on this planet. So SpaceX has executed wonderful issues. Starship has had some problems. I’ve bought some ideas on that, however my hat is off to SpaceX.
“The staff — what they’ve executed is wonderful. And albeit, Elon Musk constructed a tremendous firm. So we would like them to succeed right here in Texas. We wish them proceed to assist NASA. Not solely NASA, however the navy and different companies within the authorities that use their providers. So SpaceX is essential. What we have to do is separate the politics and do away with the battle of curiosity.”
What’s your tackle the connection between public coverage and these personal billionaires who’re at present shaping entry to house?
“I am glad that they are spending cash and creating rockets. Like I stated, with out the Falcon 9, the US authorities would not be capable to accomplish its missions. Bezos is engaged on New Glenn. New Glenn goes to be an vital rocket. So I am glad that they are spending their time and skills and efforts. They make use of 1000’s of engineers and scientists and all types of staff right here in Texas and across the nation. So I am glad they’re doing that.
“An even bigger downside is the rise of those billionaires and mega centibillionaires. There’s lots of moral problems with, ‘Are they turning into extra vital than the federal government?’ They’re unelected folks which are exercising supernational powers, and so that’s one thing that we’ve to cope with.
“NASA’s job, usually, is to not design new rockets. We rent different corporations to do this. I believe the secret’s that we do a public-private partnership properly. If we do public-private partnerships properly, we enable the American personal sector to innovate. Nobody does that higher on planet Earth than America, and lots of that occurs proper right here in Texas. And we enable the federal government to effectively handle and supply funds to those corporations. If we are able to do the public-private partnership properly, I believe that is the important thing to house exploration sooner or later. However within the brief time period, I am glad that they are placing within the effort. I believe all of us profit from rising the house exploration trade.”
What position do you see China’s rising presence enjoying in the way forward for the house trade?
What position do you assume Congress ought to be enjoying in house safety coverage?
“I believe that it is actually vital for America to ship people again to the moon first, not simply to beat our chests about how we’re higher than all people else, however actually the explanation why we make it to the moon is due to our goodness — as a result of our system of freedom and liberty and, sure, typically chaos, is a greater system than China.
“You see lots of people coming right here to go to highschool at Harvard, or College of Texas, or Texas A&M, or wherever. You do not see folks beating down the door to go to China. So I believe the explanation why we have to be the first back to the moon isn’t just a technical cause. I believe it is actually to shine the highlight on why freedom and liberty and democracy are higher than tyranny and oppression. Humanity is form of at a crossroads proper now. Democracy shouldn’t be doing nice, and these authoritarian regimes appear to be on the rise. And that is a method for us to indicate that, no, democracy is the higher manner.
“The large factor about nationwide safety and the moon: There are lots of technical issues. The aptitude to launch heavy-lift autos and to function on the moon, and simply the power to do that mission reveals that you are a fairly succesful nation. I imply, to date, there’s been an N of 1; it has been America solely who’s been ready to do this. So it does present your technical prowess. Area safety and warranted entry to house is basically vital.
We simply had this mission in Iran. That mission was extremely sophisticated. I am so pleased with the US Air Power. That was a tricky mission to fly over — 100 airplanes, 30 hours — It was an advanced mission. They did an ideal job. Each side of that mission trusted entry to house, so our entry to house must be on the absolute high of our nationwide priorities.
“Congress must work on that in a bipartisan sense. I do not care [about political affiliation] — I will work with Republicans, Independents on this and make it possible for we’ve very robust, assured entry to house.”
How does that perspective affect your opinion of overseas coverage usually?
“International coverage usually, I believe, has been an absolute catastrophe in the previous few months.
“I am going to brag on Texas a bit bit. The commerce that Texas does — the imports and exports in Texas alone — if that have been an economic system and a nation by itself, it will be within the high third of worldwide economies. So Texas actually advantages from commerce, and we actually profit from this American rules-based order that has labored very well on this planet for the final 80 years.
“In just some weeks, Trump was damaging that. You realize, actually taking a hammer to the muse of what we constructed: Siding with Russia in opposition to our good friend, Ukraine, and so forth. So I believe overseas coverage is essential, and we have to get again to selling American values, having a values-based overseas coverage and never a transactional-based overseas coverage. This isn’t some Manhattan on line casino that [Trump is] going to place out of enterprise. That is overseas coverage, that is relationships, and we have to give attention to American values and never transactionalism.”
What are the most important challenges you see in your race forward in Texas?
How do you propose on differentiating your self between “widespread sense and the D.C. Democrats”?
“One of many challenges is that it is such a giant state. I imply, if Texas have been a rustic, we’d be the eighth-largest economic system on Earth. Texas is mainly a continent of its personal. While you see it from house, it’s attractive. You realize, there’s the deserts of West Texas, the hill nation, and you may see the large forests within the East and the attractive Gulf of Mexico. So, Texas is form of every thing.
“So one of many challenges for me: I will be placing lots of miles on my truck, driving across the state. However you realize what I discovered right here in Texas? Texans are very sensible folks. We’re quite common sense. And there’s a actual starvation for honesty, for politicians to simply converse the reality, to simply give us some straight discuss. They usually’re form of fed up with D.C. politics. The Democratic Get together in D.C. has been a catastrophe. It must get higher. The Democrats that I do know right here in Texas need one thing new. So I believe that is going to be a constructive factor for my message, as a result of I need to be a common sense Democrat and never a D.C. Democrat, and that is going to be my focus going across the state.
“A giant differentiator between me [and other candidates] is that I am not a politician. I have never been a congressman for years. I did not work within the Obama administration. I have never been a conventional Democrat, and my background — who I’m as a person — is anyone who solves issues. I am a fighter pilot and a take a look at pilot. So I will go to Congress not as a Democrat. I will go to Congress as an American and as a Texan to resolve issues and get issues executed.
“So, I believe simply my background is totally completely different than lots of the folks who would possibly enter this race. Proper now, I am the one declared particular person within the Democratic main, so far as I do know. However I believe that is that is the large differentiator. It is simply who I’m as a fighter pilot and take a look at pilot and astronaut, and never a politician.
“You realize, my mother, my dad, my aunts and uncles — no person ever went to school. I used to be the primary one to go to school. My mother was a secretary. She truly labored at NASA Goddard [Space Flight Center] after I was a child. My uncle labored at Northrop Grumman as a union man. My cousin works there now as a union man. So I come from a union household, or working-class household.
“I used to be an astronaut. That is a extremely distinctive factor, I am going to grant you that. However I additionally grew up in a working-class household. I imply, I labored in an orchard after I was 15 years outdated, selecting apples and pumpkins. So, I come from a working-class background. I simply occurred to spend seven months in house.”
What would you say are your greatest targets when you’re within the Senate?
“Here is my one objective: I will signify Texans.
“I will signify all Texans. I will be trustworthy with them. I am not going to be a politician. I will inform them the reality. I haven’t got a magic wand that I will wave to resolve all their issues with one invoice. That does not exist. I do not care in the event that they vote for me or not, in the event that they’re Republicans, Democrats, independents — I will signify all Texans, and I will try to carry some sanity again to D.C., some widespread sense.
“Let’s resolve issues. Let’s not be mean-spirited. Let’s not be a bully, like this present administration simply bullies folks round, simply spewing hate. The presidential press conference on the White Home garden yesterday you possibly can’t even placed on Area.com due to the profanities that the President was screaming. So I will try to carry that temperature down and really resolve issues. I will give attention to the economic system, healthcare, schooling — issues that individuals care about, and never on this political bickering and simply stabbing the opposite facet with a ‘gotcha.’ I need to resolve issues for Texans.”
Terry Virts flew aboard space shuttle Endeavour as pilot for the STS-130 mission in 2010 and later took command of the ISS in 2015. Over the course of his NASA profession, he spent over 212 days in house. Since retiring, Virts has stayed energetic within the public sphere by writing, talking engagements and selling STEM (science, expertise, engineering and math) schooling.