Here’s everything you need to know about Trump’s decision on Space Command’s headquarters and how leaders in Alabama and Colorado are responding.
President Trump announces space command move to Huntsville, Alabama
President Donald Trump has announced that the US Space Command headquarters will move to Huntsville, Alabama.
- Space Command is responsible for military operations that go beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, or more than about 62 miles.
- Trump reestablished Space Command in 2019 during his first term. Originally created in 1985.
- Trump’s decision to move headquarters to Huntsville, Alabama reverses the moves made under former President Joe Biden’s administration.
President Donald Trump has chosen to move the US Space Command headquarters from Colorado to Alabama, moving deeply in the future of a country’s military operations across the globe.
The move, released by Trump on September 2, is a reversal of a Biden-era decision to create a permanent home for Space Command, Springs, Colorado, and a revival of his own first-term plan, which awards headquarters to Huntsville, Alabama. It is also the latest development in a longstanding political battle over whether the military’s latest programme is based on blue or red states.
Huntsville, Alabama’s largest city, is now poised to be the central location of operations to expand the power of the US military into space, in order to compete with rivals such as Russia and China.
Here’s everything you need to know about Trump’s decision on Space Command’s headquarters and how leaders in Alabama and Colorado are responding.
Donald Trump announces relocation of Space Command headquarters
Trump announced at a White House press conference on Tuesday, September 2nd that the US Space Command, one of the Department of Defense’s 11 combat commands, will be relocating from Colorado Springs to Huntsville.
What is the US Space Command?
US Space Command is responsible for military operations that go beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, or for more than about 62 miles of military operations. This includes protecting the satellite from potential threats.
More specifically, Space Command performs operations such as enabling satellite-based navigation and military communication, providing warnings for missile launches.
According to the Department of Defense, the command to carry out military operations is separate from the US Space Forces, which are the service divisions of military operations, such as the Army and Navy.
In a statement on social media site X, Space Command said it was “ready to carry out the President’s direction following today’s announcement.”
When was Space Command established?
Space Command was created in 1985 to provide joint command and management to all military forces in the universe before it was integrated into the US strategic command in 2002.
Space Command was then reestablished in 2019 under the first Trump administration, which focused on potential space-based combat.
Where in Alabama do space orders move?
Trump has announced he is moving through Space Command headquarters to Army Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. The facility dates back to World War II and is also the site of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.
Why was Space Command headquartered in Colorado?
Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs was the first interim home to Space Command since 2019.
Trump’s decision to move headquarters to Huntsville overturns movements made under former President Joe Biden’s administration. Biden chose Colorado Springs in 2023, choosing it as a permanent home for Space Command after some military supporters suggested that relocating bases could put military preparations at risk.
Why did Trump move Space Command to Huntsville?
Trump’s moves are consistent with the original preferences of the Air Force, which is the basis of Huntsville’s orders.
Huntsville officials have long lobbyed at Space Command headquarters.
The city is a major hub for defense contractors and aerospace companies, including Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. The Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command is also located in Huntsville. Huntsville is called the “Rocket City” because of its role in building the first rockets that helped the United States reach the moon.
The move benefits Trump’s overwhelming support of three Republican presidential bids at the expense of his opposition.
Trump denied that politics was involved in his decision, still citing the use of states in mail-in voting as a “big factor.”
“The issues I had in Colorado are one of the big issues and they do vote by mail,” Trump said. “So they automatically bent the election.”
Alabama officials praise the decision
According to the Trump administration, Alabama officials are evasive about the imminent relocation, which offers tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in investment.
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivy said in a statement that the state has been preparing Huntsville to become the ultimate space command since Trump revived the military in 2019.
“As our history shows, Alabama is always ready to help defend our great nations, and Huntsville continues to prove that the Rocket City is truly the “center of the universe,” Ivy said in a statement.
Trump’s ally Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, said in a statement that the president is “doing the right thing.”
“The Biden administration chose politics over national security,” Tuberville said in a statement. “We couldn’t be excited to welcome Spacecom to Rocket City any time soon.”
Colorado officials are pushed back
Meanwhile, Colorado leaders blame the move as a waste of taxpayers’ money, putting national security at risk.
The Colorado Congressional delegation, counting Republican Trump’s ally, Rep. Lauren Beaubert, said in a statement that moving Space Command out of the state “will undermine national security at the worst possible time.”
“Mobile Space Command sets up our space defense equipment year by year, wasting billions of taxpayer dollars, passing advantages to the converging threats of China, Russia and North Korea,” the lawmaker continued.
Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Movalard lamented the X posting move as “a deeply unfortunate thing that is not just for our city, but for our country and for taxpayers.”
In a joint statement, Colorado Governor Jared Polis and Lt. Col. Diane Primavera criticized the move as “uprooting military families.”
Contribution: Reuters
Eric Lagatta is a Space Connect reporter for the USA Today Network. Contact him at elagatta@gannett.com
