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Decision reverses Biden's choice of Colorado Springs

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Relocation could cost millions and take years, defense

officials

previously estimated

By Mike Stone

WASHINGTON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald

Trump announced on Tuesday the relocation of U.S. Space Command

headquarters from Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Huntsville,

Alabama, in a move that will draw criticism from Democrats and

could cost hundreds of millions.

The move, first reported on Tuesday morning by Reuters,

benefits a state that overwhelmingly supported Trump's three

Republican presidential bids, at the expense of one that opposed

them.

"We love Alabama. I only won it by about 47 points. I don't

think that influenced my decision, though," Trump told reporters

and lawmakers gathered in the Oval Office.

The decision reverses a move made under former President Joe

Biden's administration, which had selected Colorado Springs as

the permanent home for the military's newest combatant command.

Defense officials have previously estimated that relocating

the headquarters, which became fully operational in December

2023, could cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take three

to four years to complete.

About 1,700 personnel work at Space Command, according to

congressional records.

Trump has often linked federal funding decisions and

politics. The president previously blocked a move to put the

FBI's headquarters in Maryland, calling it a "liberal state,"

and suggested linking disaster aid in California to the state's

policy decisions.

Huntsville, home to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and

a major hub for defense contractors, such as L3Harris ( LHX )

and Lockheed Martin ( LMT ), has long lobbied for the Space

Command headquarters.

The Space Command, established in 2019 under the first Trump

administration, is responsible for military operations beyond

Earth's atmosphere and defending U.S. satellites from potential

threats.