Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet released the following statement regarding the Department of Defense Inspector General’s report on the decision to move U.S. Space Command from Colorado to Alabama:
“We are reviewing the findings of the report, and will have more to share in the coming days. Our position remains that the previous administration used a basing process for U.S. Space Command that was untested, lacked transparency, and neglected critical national security and cost considerations. Chief among those concerns is Peterson Space Force Base’s singular ability to reach Full Operational Capability as quickly as possible. Space Command should remain permanently based at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado.”
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, Hickenlooper and Bennet 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.
In March, 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.
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