Rep. Crank Leads Colorado Republican House Delegation Letter to President Trump on Space Command

WASHINGTON - Today, Rep. Jeff Crank (CO-05) led a letter from the Colorado Republican Delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives to President Donald J. Trump on their unified support for maintaining the U.S. Space Command's (USSPACECOM) current location in Colorado Springs.

Since 2021, the U.S. Space Command has achieved Full Operational Capacity (FOC) at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs. China and Russia have advanced the weaponization of space, and the national debt has increased nearly 30% in the past few years. Transferring the Command at such a turbulent time would jeopardize our national security, needlessly put American lives at risk, and create an unnecessary waste of taxpayer resources.

Excerpts from the letter read:

Colorado Springs is already home to key national security space assets that provide irreplaceable infrastructure and support for USSPACECOM. These include the United States Space Force's Space Operations Command, the National Space Defense Center, and NORAD/NORTHCOM, which possess critical infrastructure and expertise that will not be duplicated elsewhere. Our aerospace ecosystem also offers unparalleled synergy between public and private sectors with hundreds of aerospace companies and suppliers supporting defense initiatives. This industry presence and its skilled labor will not move if USSPACECOM is relocated. Colorado Springs is proud of its strong military community with common sense values that allows USSPACECOM to attract the best minds that American has to offer. Moving the Command would disrupt these established capabilities and partnerships, further diminishing our preparedness to face evolving threats.

The current location of USSPACECOM has already proven its readiness through rigorous assessments and years of operational success. Colorado Springs boasts an experienced workforce, cutting-edge infrastructure, and secure communication platforms essential to USSPACECOM's mission. The Command has established contracts with local companies that provide critical support to its operations; these important relationships would be eliminated with a relocation effort and would destabilize the program.

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Setting our space defense capabilities back seven years will also directly affect the development of the Golden Dome program. Like you, we view Golden Dome as essential to homeland defense as our adversaries are advancing the development of new capabilities that seek to take advantage of our outdated legacy detection, tracking, and interception systems. Your Executive Order makes it clear that spaced-based assets will be a key element of Dome architecture. To maximize its potential, Golden Dome requires a fully capable USSPACECOM maximizing collaboration with U.S. Northern Command, ensuring efficiency and streamlined communication between the two commands. Only Colorado Springs can support this seamless partnership.

Relocating USSPACECOM would require billions of taxpayer dollars for new headquarters construction, infrastructure development, and workforce adjustments. This does not account for the additional costs of duplicating Colorado's existing capabilities and resources. Such an inefficient use of funds directly contradicts our shared focus on fiscal responsibility and eliminating wasteful spending.

Read the full letter here.

Highlights:

• Space Command has achieved Full Operational Capability (FOC).
• Colorado Springs is already home to key national security space assets - including the United States Space Force's Space Operations Command, the National Space Defense Center, and NORAD/NORTHCOM.
• The current location of USSPACECOM has already proven its readiness through rigorous assessments and years of operational success.
• A 2022 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report and a Department of Defense (DoD) Inspector General study highlight the operational and logistical challenges of moving USSPACECOM to another location.
  • If relocated, the new facility would take up to seven additional years to achieve the operational capabilities currently available at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado Springs.
• Setting our space defense capabilities back seven years will also directly affect the development of the Golden Dome program.
• Relocating USSPACECOM would require billions of taxpayer dollars for new headquarters construction, infrastructure development, and workforce adjustments.

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