Lauren Boebert Accuses Joe Biden Administration of Mocking Space Force
Space Force #SpaceForce
Rep. Lauren Boebert accused the Biden administration of mocking Space Force, joining fellow Republican in criticizing comments by White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
“Wow. Space Force. It’s the plane of today,” Psaki responded to a question about whether Biden will keep the year-old military branch at a press briefing on Tuesday.
Her remark appeared to be a reference to a question at a previous briefing about whether Biden planned to reverse Air Force One’s paint job, completed under Donald Trump.
“It is an interesting question,” she added. “I am happy to check with our Space Force point of contact. I’m not sure who that is. I will find out and see if we have any update on that.”
Boebert suggested on Twitter that Psaki’s quip was disrespectful to the men and women who serve in Space Force.
“The Space Force is an official branch of our armed services and the Biden administration goes out and openly mocks it on television for all to see?” Boebert said. “The level of disrespect they have for those who serve is disgraceful.”
Boebert, the newly elected, gun-toting Colorado congresswoman, is no stranger to controversy herself.
An ardent advocate of former president Donald Trump, she has been criticized for pushing his baseless claims of widespread election fraud in the 2020 election and for her comments during the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6.
Last week, her tweet appearing to mock Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg met with fierce criticism.
Boebert was not the only lawmaker to criticize Psaki’s remark.
Rep. Mike Rogers, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, branded it “disgraceful” and called on Psaki to apologize to the men and women who serve in Space Force.
“It’s concerning to see the Biden administration’s press secretary blatantly diminish an entire branch of our military as the punchline of a joke, which I’m sure China would find funny,” he said in a statement to Politico.
“The Space Force was passed with near unanimous support in Congress, the same type of ‘unity’ President Biden is supposedly working towards. Jen Psaki needs to immediately apologize to the men and women of the Space Force for this disgraceful comment.”
Rep. Mike Waltz, one of the founding members of the House Space Force Caucus, tweeted: “While the Biden Administration continues to think about whether or not the [Chinese Communist Party] is a threat, China is working overtime to become the dominant force in space.
“We need the professionals [at Space Force] to keep American’s safe,” he added.
Psaki later posted a tweet, noting the “important work” of Space Force. “We look forward to the continuing work of Space Force and invite the members of the team to come visit us in the briefing room anytime to share an update on their important work,” she wrote.
Biden has yet to comment publicly on his intentions with Space Force, but eliminating it would require an act of Congress.
Trump launched the military branch in December 2019, saying space is the “world’s new war-fighting domain.” Though founded with bipartisan support, the specialized force was viewed by some as a Trump vanity project and criticized by progressive lawmakers as a waste of resources.
Trump frequently boasted about his efforts in creating a separate branch of the military for space and called it an “amazing” achievement in his farewell speech.
Boebert, Psaki and Space Force have been contacted for additional comment.
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