U.S. Space Command finally has a permanent home in Colorado after President Joe Biden succeeded in reversing a decision by the former administration to relocate the military branch to Alabama.
The Department of Defense announced the decision on Monday, ending a months-long debate over the permanent location of the Space Command headquarters that recently heated up with the blocking of funds to the Air Force. “Locating Headquarters US Space Command in Colorado Springs ultimately ensures peak readiness in the space domain for our nation during a critical period,” Brigadier General Patrick Ryder, the Defense Department’s press secretary, said in a statement.
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In December 2022, the Biden administration directed the U.S. Air Force to conduct a review of a decision made by former President Donald Trump to relocate the Space Command headquarters from Colorado to Alabama. Biden was reportedly looking to reverse that decision out of concern over Alabama’s strict anti-abortion laws, which were put into effect last summer.
For months, the uncertainty over the permanent location of the Space Command resulted in a heated feud between Alabama lawmakers and the current administration.
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“Let me repeat what everyone already knows: Alabama is the only rightful home for Space Command Headquarters,” Alabama Governor Kay Ivey wrote in a statement on May 30. Shortly after, Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee and an Alabama rep, released a bill that would not only restrict spending on the construction of the Space Command’s current facilities in Colorado but also limit funds for the Air Force.
In the end, however, reports suggest that Biden was convinced to keep the headquarters in Colorado by the head of Space Command General James Dickinson, who argued that relocating it now would jeopardize military readiness to respond to space-based threats, anonymous U.S. officials told CBS News. Dickinson’s views were not aligned with those of Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who tried to convince the administration that relocating to Alabama was the right move, Politico reported.
Despite agreeing with the head of the Space Command, Biden’s decision will surely anger Alabama officials. Alabama Rep. Dale Strong issued a statement condemning Biden’s call, arguing that the administration is “ignoring what is best for our nation’s security and is instead using their woke agenda to make this decision.”
The Space Command is still not fully operational but is set to reach full operations by the end of the year. Although it’s easy to confuse them, Space Command and Space Force aren’t the same thing. Space Command is its own part of the U.S. Department of Defense. It’s there to handle operations in space, keep conflicts from starting, and if need be, take down aggression. Basically, it works with allies to protect U.S. interests in space, according to the Department of Defense.
Related: Space Force isn’t quite what you think it is
Space Force, on the other hand, is a separate military branch focused on organizing, training, and equipping space forces to protect U.S. and allied interests in space.
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