Trump’s Re-Election Could Reignite Battle Over Space Command Headquarters

Despite a months-long conflict that yet settled the U.S. Space Command successful Colorado, the subject subdivision whitethorn beryllium astatine hazard of relocating to Alabama erstwhile again.

President-elect Donald Trump is expected to determination the Space Command office to Huntsville, Alabama, a determination helium had made during his archetypal word that was aboriginal reversed by President Joe Biden retired of interest for the state’s anti-abortion law. “Trump’s gonna beryllium there. He’s going to enforce what the caput of the Air Force said nether his medication and the caput of the Air Force said nether Biden’s administration,” Mike Rogers, an Alabama Republican and the seat of the House Armed Services Committee, is quoted arsenic saying successful a report by Politico. “That is, Huntsville won the contention … and that’s wherever it should beryllium and that’s wherever he’s going to physique it.”

On the different hand, Colorado lawmakers are gearing up to combat the determination to relocate the Space Command to Alabama nether Trump’s upcoming term. “Obviously, I judge that if it’s down to subject value, Colorado is the spot for it to be,” U.S. Representative-elect Jeff Crank, a Republican who volition correspond Colorado Springs successful Congress, told The Denver Post. “If [Trump] wants to physique retired the Space Force and Space Command and person it conscionable the nationalist information infinitesimal and our threats, past helium volition support it here.”

In December 2022, the Biden medication directed the U.S. Air Force to behaviour a reappraisal of a determination made by Trump to relocate the Space Command office from Colorado to Alabama. Biden was reportedly looking to reverse that determination retired of interest implicit Alabama’s strict anti-abortion laws.

Biden’s determination sparked a months-long feud implicit the rightful spot for the U.S. Space Command, with Alabama lawmakers resorting to restricting the Air Force’s budget to enactment unit connected the administration. In June 2023, Mike Rogers, president of the House Armed Services Committee and an Alabama rep, released a bill that would not lone restrict spending connected the operation of the Space Command’s existent facilities successful Colorado but besides bounds funds for the Air Force.

Finally successful August 2023, President Biden succeeded successful reversing Trump’s decision, overmuch to the dismay of Alabama officials. Alabama Republican Dale Strong issued a connection condemning Biden’s call, arguing that the medication is “ignoring what is champion for our nation’s information and is alternatively utilizing their woke docket to marque this decision.”

With Trump returning to bureau successful January, officials are expecting him to reverse Biden’s determination and relocate the Space Command office to Alabama. This back-and-forth volition surely disrupt the precocious reestablished Space Command’s efforts to go afloat operational.

Trump established the U.S. Space Command successful 2019 during his archetypal word arsenic president. The U.S. had a Space Command from 1985 to 2002, erstwhile it was dissolved by erstwhile President George W. Bush and its functions absorbed by the U.S. Strategic Command.

Although it’s casual to confuse them, the Space Command is antithetic from the Space Force. The Space Command is simply a combatant bid of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to behaviour “operations in, from, and to abstraction to deter conflict, and if necessary, decision aggression, present abstraction combat powerfulness for the joint/combined force, and support U.S. captious interests with allies and partners,” according to the DOD. Space Force, connected the different hand, is simply a abstracted subject subdivision focused connected organizing, training, and equipping abstraction forces to support U.S. and allied interests successful space.

Trump had besides vowed to make a Space National Guard during his 2nd word arsenic president, a determination that the Biden medication had deemed unnecessary and costly. The upcoming president could assistance sway lawmakers successful favour of the Space National Guard, and reignite the feud betwixt Alabama and Colorado implicit the Space Command’s headquarters.