A House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Republican from Louisiana is the latest congressman to pitch his state as the future home for the new U.S. Space Command.
The Pelican State would be “an ideal location” for the future combatant command with its strong existing ties to the Defense Department and NASA, Rep. Ralph Abraham (R-La.) wrote in a March 12 letter to President Trump. The state is already home to Air Force Global Strike Command at Barksdale Air Force Base, and the two commands would share missions of “innovation, strategic deterrence and global strike and combat support,” Abraham said in the letter, which was reviewed by Defense Daily.
He adds that Louisiana’s Michoud Assembly Facility has provided vehicles and components for the U.S. space program dating back to the Apollo 11 program up to today’s Space Launch System effort underway by NASA. The state is home to two space grant universities – Louisiana State University and Louisiana Tech University – “which can provide research and manpower support opportunities for Space Command,” Abraham said.
Abraham is a member of the HASC subcommittees for intelligence and emerging threats and capabilities, as well as for military personnel. He served in the 115th Congress on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, and was the vice chair for the space subcommittee.
Lawmakers from Florida and Colorado have also pitched their states for the future location of U.S. Space Command (Defense Daily, Feb. 19). Trump signed a directive to establish the new combatant command for space this past December.