Senate authorizers to hold Space Force hearing

Senior Pentagon officials have been called to Capitol Hill for a hearing next week on the Trump administration's proposed Space Force, according to a Senate Armed Services Committee statement issued this morning.

The hearing will be held the morning of April 11, according to the statement. Acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan, Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford, and U.S. Strategic Command chief Gen. John Hyten are scheduled to testify.

"A coherent space strategy is an integral part of our National Defense Strategy," committee Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-OK) said in the statement. "This hearing will give us an opportunity to examine the president's proposal for the Space Force and lay the groundwork for a path forward. I look forward to hearing from Pentagon leadership about what they see as the necessary capabilities of a space force, the costs and benefits associated with their solutions, and what our full range of options are."

"Defending American assets and interests in space is a must, and I hope this hearing will help answer key questions about how best to achieve that mission," committee Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI) said. "Can it be accomplished with a full unified command for space, or is an entirely new and separate military branch needed? What are the costs of establishing a new military service for space?"