WASHINGTON – The Space Force moved closer to liftoff Tuesday after President Donald Trump signed a directive to create another branch of the military whose mission would be to monitor the heavens and protect the USA from attack.
During a signing ceremony in the Oval Office, Trump said he views the new military branch as part of his responsibility to protect the nation.
“I was put here for security, whether it’s Space Force, which I’m doing today, or whether it’s borders,” the president said.
Money for the program will be included in the administration’s proposed budget for 2020 that will come out next month, the White House said Tuesday morning. That seed money is likely to be less than $100 million.
Eventually, an undersecretary of defense for space would be named, and the program – which would start as a division of the U.S. Air Force – would become the sixth armed service, joining the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Coast Guard. More at source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/02/19/space-force-directive/2913033002/
