Washington, D.C. –Today, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet and U.S. Representatives Doug Lamborn and Jason Crow released the following statement after being briefed on the draft Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the decision to move U.S. Space Command from Colorado to Alabama:
“We have said before that the U.S. Space Command basing decision was the result of a flawed and untested process that lacked transparency and neglected key national security and cost considerations. After reviewing the draft GAO report, we are even more concerned about the questionable decision to move U.S. Space Command from Colorado to Alabama.
“Putin’s war on Ukraine and China’s space expansion underscore the need for U.S. Space Command to reach full operational capability as soon as possible. We cannot afford any operational disruptions or delays to the mission currently being conducted at Peterson Space Force Base, which is why U.S. Space Command must remain in Colorado.
“We will continue to work on a bipartisan basis to urge the Biden Administration to keep U.S. Space Command at Peterson. Colorado Springs is the best and only home for U.S. Space Command. We look forward to the report’s public release in the near future.”
BACKGROUND:
In December 2020, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet joined more than 600 state, federal, local, county and municipal officials, businesspeople, philanthropists, civic leaders, military officials, entrepreneurs and Coloradans from across the state in a letter urging Trump to keep the Command in the Centennial State.
In January 2021, following the relocation announcement, Bennet and Hickenlooper released a statement denouncing the decision and expressing concern that the Trump White House influenced the decision for political reasons.
In January 2021, Hickenlooper and Bennet also led a letter from the entire Colorado Congressional Delegation that urged President Joe Biden to suspend the Trump Administration’s decision to move U.S. Space Command from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Huntsville, Alabama until the administration conducts a thorough review.
In June 2021, Hickenlooper, Bennet and U.S. Representatives Jason Crow and Doug Lamborn, and a bipartisan majority of the Colorado Congressional Delegation invited Vice President Kamala Harris to visit Colorado and its thriving space industry.
In September 2021, Hickenlooper, Bennet, Crow, Lamborn and a group of bipartisan members of the Colorado Congressional Delegation sent a letter to Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall urging him to suspend the Trump Administration’s decision to move U.S. Space Command from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Huntsville, Alabama until the administration conducts a thorough review.
Last month, Hickenlooper and Bennet announced support from thirteen leading aerospace companies and accelerators to keep U.S. Space Command in Colorado due in large part to the state’s commanding aerospace industry, which supports U.S. defense and space missions.
Recently, Hickenlooper and Bennet led a letter from the entire Colorado Congressional Delegation calling on President Joe Biden to ensure the U.S. Space Command basing decision takes into account national security and cost implications, and considers the findings of two pending reviews.