WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) released the following statement regarding President Biden’s politically-based decision to keep U.S. Space Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado, instead of following through with the previous U.S. Air Force decision to make Huntsville, Alabama, the permanent home of SPACECOM headquarters.
“Over two and a half years ago, the Air Force chose Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville for the headquarters of Space Command over 59 other cities on the basis of 21 different criteria.
As soon as Joe Biden took office, he paused movement on that decision and inserted politics into what had been a fair and objective competition—not because the facts had changed, but because the political party of the sitting President had changed.
The Biden Administration has been talking a lot about readiness over the past few months, but no Administration has done more to damage our military readiness in my lifetime. They’ve politicized our military, destroyed our recruiting, misused our tax dollars for their extremist social agenda, and now they are putting Space Command headquarters in a location that didn’t even make the top three. They are doing this at a time when space is only becoming more important for national security.
It is also shameful that the Administration waited until Congress had gone into recess and already passed next year’s defense budget before announcing this decision.
The top three choices for Space Command headquarters were all in red states—Alabama, Nebraska, and Texas. Colorado didn’t even come close. This decision to bypass the three most qualified sites looks like blatant patronage politics, and it sets a dangerous precedent that military bases are now to be used as rewards for political supporters rather than for our security.
There remain serious questions as to whether the Air Force illegally used taxpayer dollars to upgrade facilities in Colorado Springs. I hope that House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers will continue his investigation into that matter.
This is absolutely not over. I will continue to fight this as long as it takes to bring Space Command where it would be best served—Huntsville, Alabama.
Today’s disastrous mistake just adds to the long string of bad decisions that this compromised President has made. He is batting 1000 in that category since taking office.”
BACKGROUND
In 2020, the U.S. Air Force conducted an extensive search for the best location for the new home of SPACECOM, reviewing objective criteria like infrastructure, costs, mission capability, and the quality of the local community. Sixty-six different locations in twenty-six states were evaluated, and in the end, Redstone ranked number one.
At the request of other lawmakers, the U.S. Department of Defense Inspector General (DoD IG) and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) both conducted investigations into U.S. Air Force’s site selection process for SPACECOM headquarters.
Following the release of the DoD IG’s report, which concluded that the U.S. Air Force followed a legal, fair, and logical process, Senator Tuberville praised the findings of the report. The IG report said, in part, “Overall, we determined that the 2020 Basing Action directed by the SECDEF complied with Federal Law and DoD policy and that the Basing Action process was reasonable.” After his office was briefed on the GAO report, which had similar findings to the IG report, Senator Tuberville issued a video statement in which he said, “it’s time to fully embrace the Air Force’s decision and move forward together. The U.S. Air Force needs and deserves our full support.” After both reports were released, Senator Tuberville sent a letter to his colleagues outlining the findings and how politically-motivated delays negatively impact the nation’s readiness.
In a Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing on March 9, 2023, Senator Tuberville pressed a senior military official in defense of the U.S. Air Force’s decision to move SPACECOM to Alabama, confirming independent studies that prove Redstone Arsenal is, unquestionably, the best location. In the hearing, Senator Tuberville questioned General James Dickinson, commander of SPACECOM, about the criteria and scores that led to Huntsville’s selection. These questions prompted General Dickinson to confirm the process that chose Alabama as the number one choice for SPACECOM.
The hearing on March 9 came hours after Senator Tuberville took to the Senate floor to methodically lay out the facts supporting Redstone Arsenal as the best location for SPACECOM, defend Alabama from baseless political attacks, and urge the military to proceed with its original plan to permanently bring SPACECOM to Huntsville as soon as possible.
On March 27, Senator Tuberville wrote a letter to the editor of the Washington Post, rebuffing inaccurate attacks on the selection of Huntsville and explaining why the facts show Redstone Arsenal is the best location for SPACECOM.
On June 21, Senator Tuberville introduced legislation to stop the Biden administration from cherry-picking federal leases or property buildings based on the legality or availability of abortion services in certain states.
Senator Tuberville advocated for SPACECOM to come to Alabama at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing earlier this month with Lieutenant General Gregory Gulliot, nominee to be general and Commander of NORTHCOM, and Lieutenant General Stephen Whiting, nominee to be general and Commander of SPACECOM.
READ MORE:
Tuberville Advocates for SPACECOM’s Move to Alabama at Senate Armed Services Hearing
Tuberville Presses Air Force Secretary to Finalize SPACECOM’s Move to Alabama
Tuberville Presses Space Command General to Confirm SPACECOM’s Move to Alabama
The Best Place for Space Command is Huntsville
Tuberville on Space Command Environmental Impact Study
VIDEO: Tuberville on GAO Space Command Report
Tuberville: “Alabama and Redstone Arsenal are Ready for Space Command”
Pentagon Nominees Refuse to Second Guess Space Command Move to Huntsville
Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, and HELP Committees.
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