Written by Michael W. Howell
Senior Writer and Editor at Fighting the Tyranny
What does a country with over 700 military bases in over 130 countries do next? What could possibly be the last remaining Superpower’s next move having already conquered global dominance through its military might? An expansion, of course. This time the threat is inter-galaxy. Or is it interstellar? I better brush up on my, what use to be considered as Sci-Fi talk, because it looks like I may need to know the lingo now with America, or Earth, getting a Space Force! Yes, a Space Force. Remember our reactions when Newt Gingrich talked about the need for a Mars exploration during a Presidential debate? Well, President Donald Trump’s announcement Monday wasn’t that of expanding space exploration, or even a new mission to hopefully uncover new technology. Nope, the silliness of this administration hit a new laughable level with his revealing of a new “Space Force.”
“We must have American dominance in space,” Trump said during a speech at the National Space Council meeting, held at the White House on Monday.
“I’m hereby directing the Department of Defense to immediately begin the process to establish a space force as the sixth branch of the armed forces.”
“We are going to have the Air Force, and we are going to have the space force,” Trump said. “Separate, but equal. It is going to be something so important.”
“My new national strategy for space recognizes that space is a war-fighting domain, just like the land, air, and sea,” Trump said at the rally. “We may even have a ‘Space Force’ — develop another one. Space Force. We have the Air Force; we’ll have the Space Force.”
Of course, everything with President Trump has to be YUGE and exaggerated, and the recent talks of the Space Force aren’t any different. Giving himself credit as only the “Donald” can, he stated that the idea came to him just recently.
“I was saying it the other day—cause we’re doing a tremendous amount of work in space—I said, maybe we need a new force. We’ll call it the space force. And I was not really serious. And then I said, what a great idea. Maybe we’ll have to do that. That could happen. That could be the big, breaking story.”
Ironically, President Trump has already stopped the creation of a Space Force once, yet, now he wants to take credit for the idea. In July of 2017, the House of Representatives passed legislation that would direct the Defense Department to create a “Space Corps” as a new military service, housed within the Air Force. It was President Trump’s Pentagon that was in opposition to the program.
When Heather Wilson, the Air Force Secretary, was brought in and asked about the potential new program, she replied, “The Pentagon is complicated enough… This will make it more complex, add more boxes to the organization chart, and cost more money. If I had more money, I would put it into lethality, not bureaucracy.”
Since the days of President Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars Defense Program, a version of a Space Force has been shuffled around the halls of government. In 2000, a military-reform commission led by Donald Rumsfeld suggested the creation of such a force, but the idea was scrapped after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the following wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Last year, the House Armed Services Committee approved a measure to create a space corps brought forward by Mike Rogers, a Republican from Alabama, and Jim Cooper, a Democrat from Tennessee.
The proposed space corps would absorb the duties of the U.S. Air Force Space Command, a unit inside the Air Force that supports most of the country’s military operations in space and employs about 36,000 people across more than 130 sites around the world. The division would collect space professionals throughout the government into one place. “The military has not done a good enough job looking after space with all its other distracting priorities,” Cooper told Berman last year. “It’s just not getting the attention it deserves.”
The measure made it into the House’s version of an annual defense bill, but the Senate’s version banned it. The Pentagon stood by in its opposition, which was carried over from the Obama administration. Congress passed their final bill in November with no mention of the space corps. Its most fervent supporters vowed momentum would return, but the idea has mostly fallen out of consideration again.
In a report that was written in April of 1998, by Major Steven R. Looten, it outlines in concrete details the duties and responsibilities, protocol, and the future direction of a Space Force. The title of the report is called, “Space Force 2020” indicating a projected target date for the implementation of such a department.
The report is interesting and telling at the same time. It is complete with charts and tables to help illustrate the objectives leaving no room for speculation as to its intent. This is the future of the United States military and the reason given for the need to rush to dominate this space race, as was the case with the space race with the former Soviet Union in the 1960’s, is, well, dominate. The President said the new branch’s creation will be overseen by General Joseph Dunford, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
There is so much to keep an eye out for concerning the Trump administration, and this latest announcement promises to be one to watch for years to come. Social media already had its fun with the idea of a Space Force. The memes have ranged from Spaceball references to Star Wars characters all chiming in with their whimsical notion of fighting for freedoms, in space! Whatever the future holds for the program one thing is sure. Gross government spending and irresponsible management will be the norm with any new or existing government intervention.
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Be sure to pick up Michael W. Howell’s book titled, Anatomy of the Global Agenda from Amazon, Books-A-Million, or Barnes and Noble, or ask for it at your favorite bookstore
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