Ever since Redstone Arsenal was selected by the Air Force in 2021 to become the permanent home of U.S. Space Command, Colorado lawmakers have lobbied for the decision to be reversed.
After receiving a private briefing from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) last month, members of Colorado’s congressional delegation claimed that the report found that the decision to relocate Space Command to Huntsville was “flawed.”
Pushing back against the Colorado lawmakers’ narrative were U.S. Reps. Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville) and Terri Sewell (D-Birmingham), who released a joint statement declaring that they were confident the Air Force chose Huntsville due to to the city being the “best and only” headquarters for Space Command.
During his weekly press call with reporters, U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) expressed optimism that the decision to relocate Space Command to Huntsville would be upheld.
“[I] still feel good about Space Command still being in Huntsville. Of course, this has become a political point that Democrats are trying to make,” noted Tuberville. “Space Command was appointed by the Trump administration on the fact that we deserved it in Huntsville. They looked through all the facts, and they did it on a basis of it should be in Huntsville. It’s the best place to put it and we feel good about that.”
Tuberville advised that Space Command needed to be headquartered where it would best operate in the interest of national security. According to Alabama’s junior senator, Redstone Arsenal could best meet the needs of the combatant command for a variety of reasons.
“But you have a lot of people up here and the Democrats from several states that are pushing to leave it in Colorado,” added the senator. “We want it in the best place. If Colorado had been the best place, that’s where we needed it. But after all the investigation, the best place they said for the future of Space Command was Huntsville because of a lot of different reasons. We’re excited that hopefully that will continue to be in Huntsville.”
Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
