U.S. Reps. Dale Strong (R-Huntsville) and Mike Rogers (R-Saks) are spearheading a House Armed Services Committee investigation into what's causing the continued delays in picking a permanent headquarters for U.S. Space Command.
"After a delegation meeting with the Secretary of the Air Force, I had no choice but to request that House Armed Services Committee Chairman, Mike Rogers, open a formal investigation into the Biden Administration's failure to announce a permanent location for U.S. Space Command Headquarters," Strong said in a statement Thursday.
Strong said the delay "risks politicizing a process which must remain fact-based" and could lead to "unprecedented harm" to national security.
"American men and women in uniform must be given the very best, not the third or fourth choice," Strong added, referring to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, which former President Donald Trump picked and later found in multiple studies to be the No. 1 location for SPACECOM.
"It is plain and simple: Redstone Arsenal is the best possible location to host U.S. Space Command headquarters. The Air Force's basing process established this, and it was confirmed," Strong said.
Rogers, who chairs the Armed Service Committee, reflected Strong's concerns about the harm benign caused by the delay.
"The fact is, the Air Force already made the correct decision well over two years ago," he said to Fox News Digital. "That decision was affirmed by the GAO and the DoD Inspector General over a year ago. This decision was based on multiple factors, and Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, was the clear winner in the Evaluation and Selection phase."
U.S. Sens. Katie Britt (R-Montgomery), Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) and Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle lent their support to the investigation.
"I stand firmly behind [Rogers] 's effort to get transparency and accountability," Britt tweeted. "It's in the vital national security interest of the United States that Space Command be headquartered on Redstone Arsenal."
"Multiple studies and reports have confirmed what we have already known: Huntsville is THE best place for SPACECOM. But it seems DoD leaders are letting partisan politics undermine our military readiness and national security," Tuberville said on Twitter.
"I fully support an investigation into what appears to be a shadowy attempt to undermine the ethical and objective selection process that identified Huntsville as the permanent home for Space Command," Battle said.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email daniel.taylor@1819news.com.
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