Civic Register
| 6.18.18

Trump Directing Pentagon to Create 'Space Force'

Join us and tell your reps how you feel!

What's the story?

  • President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is "directing" the Defense Department to "immediately begin the process necessary to establish a space force as the sixth branch of the armed forces."
"Our destiny beyond the Earth is not only a matter of national identity but a matter of national security," Trump said.

What would the Space Force do?

  • Also known as the “Space Corps,” this branch would be tasked with protecting America, and American assets, from threats occurring beyond Earth’s atmosphere.
  • "It is not enough to merely have an American presence in space. We must have American dominance in space," Trump said at a meeting of the U.S. Space Council.

Trump has support in Congress

  • Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AZ), the chairman of the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee, endorses space fighters:
"I am thrilled that the Space Corps idea is gaining traction at the White House. Congressman Jim Cooper (D-TN) and I have worked tirelessly on the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) Strategic Forces subcommittee level on the need for a Space Corps outside of the Air Force for over two years now," Rogers said in a statement to CNN in May.

What do you think?

Do you think the U.S. should establish a Space Force within the military? Should the Pentagon consider commercial space options instead? Does America need a military presence in space? Hit the Take Action button and tell your Reps.

—Josh Herman


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(Photo Credit: fredmantel / iStock)