Exclusive: Colorado Springs splits with state in Space Command lawsuit
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
The Trump administration plans to relocate U.S. Space Command from Colorado's Peterson Space Force Base to Alabama. Photo: RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images
Colorado Springs leaders are preparing to formally oppose the state's lawsuit over the relocation of U.S. Space Command in federal court, Axios Denver has learned.
Why it matters: As Colorado wages legal war on the White House over everything from disaster funding to research center closures, the state's second largest city and conservative military bastion is taking the opposite approach.
State of play: The Colorado Springs Chamber & Economic Development Corp. is planning to file an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
- A copy of the draft brief, obtained by Axios Denver, backs the Trump administration's motion to dismiss Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser's lawsuit challenging the decision to move Space Command headquarters from Colorado Springs to Huntsville, Alabama.
- It argues Weiser's lawsuit risks politicizing national security and weakening the city's standing with federal defense leaders.
- The Colorado Springs City Council and the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners are formally endorsing the filing through their own resolutions, per a news release shared with Axios Denver.
Zoom in: The draft brief contends that military basing decisions sit squarely within presidential authority and warns that allowing states to sue over decisions "specifically vested" in the president is a disservice to the communities and service members caught in the crosshairs.
- It calls Colorado's lawsuit part of a "wasteful trend" of governments suing each other — and cautions that courtroom fights risk damaging the city's credibility as a "constructive, respected, and reliable" U.S. defense partner.
What they're saying: The brief "is a clear stance on our region's commitment to mission readiness and strategic innovation over politics, because protecting the nation is bigger than any headquarters debate," Chamber & EDC CEO Johnna Reeder Kleymeyer said in a statement.
- Prolonged litigation, she added, threatens national security and leaves military families in limbo.
The intrigue: Notably absent from the draft brief is formal backing from Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade.
- In an op-ed last November, he expressed disappointment in the relocation decision, adding that he both respected the president's authority to make the call and the state's right to push back.
- "I respect the President's authority to make that decision and the responsibility of state leaders; including the Attorney General; to pursue the strategies they believe are appropriate," Mobolade wrote.
- Asked about the amicus brief, Mobolade's office referred Axios Denver to the op-ed.
What's next: The amicus brief is being finalized and expected to be filed in federal court in the coming weeks, per the news release shared with Axios Denver.