Esper Affirms Support for U.S. Space Command and for an Independent Space Force

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Article by Sandra Erwin                  August 28, 2019              (spacenews.com)

• On August 28th, in his first news conference as defense secretary, Mark Esper (standing alongside Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford in image above) endorsed the US Space Command as the “next crucial step” in the Pentagon’s reorganization of space forces “to ensure the protection of America’s interests in space.”

• Esper also voiced support for the creation of an independent Space Force as a branch of the armed forces. But the DoD cannot move forward on the establishment of a Space Force branch of the military until Congress authorizes it. Congress is on recess until September 9th . Sources told SpaceNews that DoD officials met with congressional committee staffers over the August recess to discuss Space Force legislation.

• The Pentagon is pushing back on the Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which re-designates the Air Force Space Command as the U.S. Space Force without revising Title 10 of the U.S. Code to establish a new military service as necessary. The Senate proposes a one-year transition to consider Title 10 revisions out of concerns about excessive costs and growth in the military bureaucracy. The House version does not require a transition period.

• During his confirmation hearing in July, Esper told the Senate Armed Services Committee that this is the right time to create a separate Space Force service. Referencing the creation of a separate Air Force in 1947, Esper said, “[We’ve] got to realize that it is a new domain of warfare and it requires a different organizational construct and a different way of thinking about it.” “I urge the committee to provide the necessary technical legislative authority to establish the Space Force as the sixth branch of the Armed Forces within the Department of the Air Force. I also request the committee to provide the department with the necessary resources to ensure its success.”

• [Editor’s Note]    This is a stand-off between the Trump-backed independent Space Force, and the Deep State-backed US Space Command. The Deep State players in the government want this whole space service under the control of Air Force generals whom the Deep State can still manipulate, in spite of the Air Force’s recent shift away from the Deep State. Trump and the Alliance want the space service separate from the Air Force and the US Space Command, so that he can staff the military branch with non-Deep State officials.

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Wednesday gave the United States Space Command a forceful endorsement and described the standup of the new command as the “next crucial step” in the Pentagon’s reorganization of space forces.

Esper spoke on Wednesday in his first news conference as defense secretary alongside Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford. Esper insisted that he does not intend to depart from the broad goals of the 2018 National Defense Strategy, which calls for DoD to work closely with allies and to modernize the U.S. military to outpace China and Russia.

On Thursday at the White House, President Trump and Vice President Pence will host an establishment ceremony with Esper and the commander of U.S. Space Command Gen. John Raymond.

“I’m excited for tomorrow’s activation of the United States Space Command to ensure the protection of America’s interests in space,” Esper said. “We must apply the necessary focus, energy and resources to the task. That is exactly what the command will do.”

Esper also voiced support for the establishment of an independent Space Force as a branch of the armed forces. But DoD cannot move forward until Congress authorizes it.

“As a unified command, the United States Space Command is the next crucial step toward the creation of an independent Space Force as an additional armed service — an independent additional armed service,” said Esper.

Congress is on recess until Sept. 9. But DoD officials have met with congressional committee staffs over the August recess to discuss Space Force legislation, sources told SpaceNews. The Pentagon specifically is pushing back on the Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which re-designates the Air Force Space Command as the U.S. Space Force but does not rewrite Title 10 of the U.S. Code to establish a new military service. The Senate proposes a one-year transition after which it would consider Title 10 revisions. The House version of the NDAA does not require that transition period.

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