Former President Trump Claims He 'Single-Handedly' Made Decision To Move Space Command Out Of Colorado
(CBS4) -- Former President Donald Trump, speaking on a radio show based in Alabama, reportedly said he "single-handedly" made the call to relocate the headquarters of U.S. Space Command from Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs to Redstone Arsenal in Hunstville, Alabama, AL.com reported. Now Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is urging the federal government to "restore integrity to the process."
Trump spoke on the Alabama-based syndicated radio show "Rick & Bubba" on Friday morning.
Friday afternoon, Gov. Polis and Lt. Governor Dianne Primavera released a statement responding to the former president's comments -- calling the decision to relocate U.S. Space Command "misguided and politicized":
"Colorado is the natural home for Space Command. These callous comments fly in the face of Coloradans, military families, and those who have worked to cultivate our aerospace ecosystem that is suited to guarantee the operational success of U.S. Space Command and deliver the best value to taxpayers.
"Keeping U.S. Space Command in Colorado means protecting our national security but it's clear that the former President - now through his own admission - made this misguided decision for political or personal purposes. Unfortunately, this poor decision could cost taxpayers billions of dollars, hurt military readiness, and would be fiscally irresponsible. We urge the federal government to truly restore integrity to the process."
Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers issued the below statement:
"We have maintained throughout the process that the permanent basing decision for U.S. Space Command was not made on merit. The admission by former President Trump that he 'single-handedly' directed the move to Huntsville, Alabama, supports our position. Our local governments and our Congressional delegation will continue to press our case in Congress and at the White House to re-examine and ultimately overturn the move in the best interest of our nation.
"Colorado Springs remains the best home for U.S. Space Command as supported by the criteria established by the U.S. Air Force.
"Colorado Springs exclusively has the established workforce, infrastructure, collaborative bases and communications capabilities to continue this vital mission. We remain ready to continue to serve as our nation's military space headquarters in the interest of security, efficiency and cost savings."
U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) issued the following response Friday:
"Former President Trump has admitted what we already knew: that he made a strictly political decision to move Space Command and completely disregarded both critical national security and budgetary considerations. This is exactly why we've called for a review and reconsideration of the decision. We look forward to the Air Force doing just that -- looking at what is best for our national security -- and making sure Space Command is located where it belongs, in Colorado Springs."
President Trump announced the decision to move Space Command in January.
In February, the Department of Defense announced it was investigating the decision.
Space Command differs from the U.S. Space Force, launched in December 2019. Space Command is not an individual military service but a central command for military-wide space operations. It operated at Peterson from 1985 until it was dissolved in 2002 and was revived in 2019.
Huntsville was chosen after Air Force site visits to Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Nebraska, New Mexico and Texas competing for the command headquarters. The Huntsville decision is subject to environmental review, expected by 2023.
