Former President Donald Trump promised to create a Space National Guard if re-elected to the Oval Office in November. That policy stance has taken on strong political significance this year and is opposed by the Air Force, Space Force and the current administration in the White House.
At an event hosted by the National Guard Association of the United States, a lobbying group that supports the goals and objectives of the U.S. Reserve, in Michigan on Monday, Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, pledged to support legislation for a “Space Force National Guard,” a major policy project supported by the organization, drawing applause from the audience.
“It is time to create a Space National Guard as the primary combat reserve of the U.S. Space Force,” Trump said. “As President, I will sign historic legislation creating a Space National Guard.”
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Trump’s endorsement of a Space National Guard came at a time when the issue reached a boiling point this year after the Space Force decided to go in a different direction.
The Space Force has not opted for a National Guard model to maintain a reserve force like the Army and Air Force. Instead, legislation was signed into law in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2024 that allows for the creation of a part-time, active-duty service model—a brand new idea.
But all of the country’s governors and bipartisan groups of lawmakers rejected the Department of the Air Force’s proposal to transfer several hundred Air National Guard soldiers assigned to space-related missions to the active Space Force.
The National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS) and various lawmakers, notably Senator Marco Rubio (R-Florida) and the late Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), have made numerous efforts in the past to push the Space National Guard model through Congress.
Trump told those present during his speech in Michigan that Rubio was “a big fan of yours” and said the senator “loves” the idea of creating a Space National Guard.
These previous legislative initiatives faced opposition from the White House Office of Management and Budget, which issued a statement in 2021 “strongly opposing” a Space Guard component because it would significantly increase costs.
The National Guard Bureau had previously stated that there were about 14 units in seven states with a total of about 1,000 soldiers conducting space missions as part of the Air National Guard and had questioned the cost figures.
In April, Military.com reported that the Air Force had submitted a bill to Congress that would transfer some of those Air National Guard units with space missions to the active Space Force, seeking exemptions from Section 104 of Title 32 and Section 18238 of Title 10 of the U.S. Code, which require state governors to approve such a move.
The proposal, which could strip governors of the ability to stop the transfer, was condemned by all U.S. governors, who claimed in a letter that the move “undermines long-standing partnerships, precedents, military readiness and operational effectiveness.”
That proposal is currently being worked out between the Republican-dominated House and Democratic-dominated Senate as they work on the NDAA, the annual defense bill that must be passed. The House version would require governors to approve such a move, and the Senate version would allow it, but the National Guard units that could be transferred to the Space Force would be limited to six states and about 600 people.
Todd Harrison, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who specializes in space policy, said in an interview with Military.com on Monday that the Space Force’s part-time service model is innovative, while a National Guard model does not make sense for a force whose sphere of operations extends outside the Earth’s atmosphere and far beyond national borders.
“That’s not practical. … They’re going to create a separate branch for those few people,” Harrison said. “I think more importantly, the Space Force has a better idea of how to integrate reservists and National Guard members into a single Space Force with part-time and full-time forces. I think what they’ve come up with is the way of the future.”
In the final days of Trump’s presidency, he oversaw the creation of the current Space Force by signing the National Defense Authorization Act of 2020, an idea he had long mentioned at political rallies.
Harrison told Military.com that given the increasing politicization of the Space National Guard issue, it is understandable that Trump would weigh in on the issue, especially since members of Congress and governors would want the reserve component to take root in their districts and states if it were created.
“It’s a bad idea overall, but I understand that it’s good populist politics and that’s why so many governors and congressmen are jumping on the idea because they know it’s going to make the people of their state happy,” Harrison added.
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