Biden made the decision on the belief that in keeping the HQ in Colorado Springs, rather than relocating it to Huntsville, it would maintain stability and not impact readiness, according to a senior U.S. official.
The senior administration official said Biden consulted with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and other military leaders before deciding to keep the base in Colorado permanently.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby later said that Biden based his choice on “one thing and one thing only” — operational readiness.
“When it came down to it, he believes that it’s in the best national security interest of the country if we leave Space Command in Colorado,” Kirby said on CNN.
He added that moving the command, which could have taken five to 10 years, would have come at too critical a time in the space domain, where China is quickly developing its own capabilities.
“In that regard, that moving could have a negative effect on Space Command’s readiness, and the president finds that unacceptable,” Kirby said.
Biden’s reversal has already sparked the fury of Alabama Republicans, who have for months feared the administration would scrap the relocation plan.
“This is absolutely not over,” Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) vowed. “I will continue to fight this as long as it takes to bring Space Command where it would be best served—Huntsville, Alabama.”
Former President Trump’s decision to temporarily establish a headquarters in Colorado and relocate Space Command to Alabama was criticized as a political choice based upon a more favorable constituency in The Yellowhammer State.
Since coming into office, the Biden administration ordered reviews of the decision, none of which found anything improper in Trump’s decision, though they found the former president could have followed better practices in the process.
The delayed relocation reached new heights over the spring when NBC News reported the Biden administration was considering scrapping the relocation plan because of restrictive abortion laws in Alabama.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
