HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Military leaders and officials from Alabama’s political delegation on Friday unveiled the future home for the U.S. Space Command at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. The move comes after President Trump overturned a Biden administration decision to leave the new combatant command at its temporary headquarters at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said Mr. Trump has recognized the strategic necessity of maintaining a dominant presence in space since his first administration, when Space Command was founded and where Huntsville was chosen as its headquarters.
“We are deadly serious and committed to cutting every piece of red tape and bureaucracy to get this headquarters established as quickly as possible,” Mr. Hegseth said. “The quicker we establish this, the more robust the capabilities are, the more likely we are able to deter the next conflict and, if necessary, stand prepared to overwhelmingly defeat our enemies.”
The move is unlikely to end the political tug-of-war between the two states. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in October. He said the decision to transfer Space Command to Alabama was intended as a punishment from the White House for its new vote-by-mail system.
“The president could not have been clearer about his motivations for moving Space Command. He said Colorado’s mail-in voting system was a ‘big factor’ in his decision-making,” Mr. Weiser said in a statement. “The Constitution does not permit the Executive Branch to punish or retaliate against states for lawfully exercising powers reserved for them, such as the power to regulate elections.”
Mr. Hegseth visited several locations during his whirlwind tour of Huntsville, including the Missile Defense Agency and a Boeing plant that manufactures critical components of the Patriot missile system.
“Would you look at what we’re doing at the Department of War? We are defending the homeland in the hemisphere. We’re deterring adversaries [and] we’re working with our allies to burden share and shift those burdens,” he said. “We’re looking at rebuilding the defense industrial beat [and] we’re reviving the warrior ethos,”
A temporary facility for U.S. Space Command is expected to be built at Redstone Arsenal within about two years. The Army Corps of Engineers will manage the construction of the 427,000 square foot headquarters, which is expected to take about seven years to complete.
Gen. Stephen N. Whiting, commander of U.S. Space Command, said the organization is not a stranger to the Huntsville area.
“Our U.S. Army service component — Space and Missile Defense Command — has operated from Redstone [Arsenal] for decades. Just earlier this year, they opened a new state-of-the-art research, development, and analysis center on the installation, reinforcing the region’s reputation for fostering innovation,” Gen. Whiting said Friday. “Our command also enjoys robust participation in the annual Space and Missile Defense Symposium, which has been hosted in Huntsville for over 30 years.”
Former President Biden ordered U.S. Space Command to remain at its temporary location in Colorado despite multiple reviews and investigations, from both Republicans and Democrats, that identified Huntsville as the preferred location due to long-term support, infrastructure, and skilled workforce.
“We know that Alabama was chosen because this is the best place for Space Command when it comes to national security. Now we’re excited for the world to see what we have always known,” said Sen. Katie Britt, Alabama Republican. “National defense means a great deal to Alabama, but we here know that Alabama means a great deal to our national defense.”
Rep. Mike Rogers, the Alabama Republican who chairs the House Armed Services Committee, said Congress has been working on the latest leg of the space race for more than a decade.
“It became obvious that if we were going to be successful at winning wars and keeping ourselves out of wars, we were going to have to have a dominant role in space that we had allowed to slip away from us,” Mr. Rogers said. “When it comes to military endeavors, we have to control space. Space Command is going to be a critical part of making that happen.”
