13 hours ago

Lauren Boebert Takes Rare Stance Against Donald Trump

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) put some space between her and President Donald Trump for a change on Tuesday.

The right-wing lawmaker brushed MAGA loyalty aside to join other Colorado lawmakers in pledging to fight Trump’s decision to relocate U.S. Space Command from Colorado Springs to Huntsville, Alabama.

Trump criticized Colorado for its mail-in voting while announcing the move, CNN noted.

In a bipartisan protest that included all House and Senate members representing Colorado, the joint statement said the headquarters change will compromise security and waste money.

“Colorado Springs is the appropriate home for U.S. Space Command,” the statement concluded. “We will take the necessary action to keep it there.”

Boebert did not advertise her opposition on X, formerly Twitter, but it spelled a rare split from Trump, whom she has said was “anointed” by God to be president.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, pictured with President Donald Trump at a Colorado rally last October, apparently isn't smiling over his decision to move the Space Command headquarters out of Colorado.

The House member also appears poised to say yes to a potential floor vote to demand that the Justice Department release the Jeffrey Epstein files that have not been previously viewed. That would defy Trump’s wishes to leave the matter alone regarding his old pal Epstein, a well-connected sex offender, after the president’s controversial about-face in interest. She already signed a discharge petition, joining fellow firebrand and Trump disciple Marjorie Taylor Greene.

HuffPost has reached out to Boebert’s team for comment.

Here’s the Colorado letter as presented by Sen. Michael Bennet (D) in a release:

Today’s decision to move U.S. Space Command’s headquarters out of Colorado and to Alabama will directly harm our state and the nation. We are united in fighting to reverse this decision. Bottom line—moving Space Command headquarters weakens our national security at the worst possible time.

Moving Space Command sets our space defense apparatus back years, wastes billions of taxpayer dollars, and hands the advantage to the converging threats of China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. The Department of Defense Inspector General’s office has reported multiple times that moving the Command will impede our military’s operational capability for years.

Space Command’s long-term presence in Colorado Springs has also created a large number of civilian businesses and workers on which the Command now relies. Those people will not simply move with the Command at the military’s whim. Many of them will leave the industry altogether, creating a disruption in the workforce that will take our national defense systems decades to recreate.

Being prepared for any threats should be the nation’s top priority; a crucial part of that is keeping in place what is already fully operational. Moving Space Command would not result in any additional operational capabilities than what we have up and running in Colorado Springs now. Colorado Springs is the appropriate home for U.S. Space Command, and we will take the necessary action to keep it there.

Trump tried to relocate Space Command in his first term, but President Joe Biden overturned the decision in 2023.