"Does not compute." That catchphrase from the 1960s show "Lost in Space" certainly captures the Biden administration's decision making of late.
After a years-long process to find the perfect spot for America's Space Command, the most radical president in history seems to be hanging his final choice on a completely unrelated policy: abortion.
It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that the two issues have nothing to do with each other — unless you're a part of the new Left-driven Democratic Party, where social extremism eclipses everything.
The controversy kicked off at the end of the Trump administration, when the president announced that he was reviving the Department of Defense's Space Command and moving its headquarters from Colorado to Alabama.
Democrats were furious, claiming that he'd only awarded the spot to the Yellowhammer State because of its conservativism. (It also happens to be home to one of the largest aerospace industry presences in the country, and a storied history in the space race, not that the Left is interested in the facts.)
Even after the Defense Department's inspector general cleared Trump of any wrongdoing — the administration "complied with law and policy," it found — Democrats have continued to urge Biden to maintain the Colorado status quo. As recently as this month, Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., went to the floor and complained that sending the Space Command from "a blue state to a red one" hurts service members.
How? Because according to Bennet and other Democrats, pro-life laws are a detriment to "our readiness and our national security." "Reproductive health," Bennet argued, should be first and foremost in the president's mind.
In other words, he's insisting that Biden do the very thing Democrats accused Trump of: politicizing a military decision. And the White House has been quite content to play along, kicking the 2022 decision well into 2023.
Of course, the Biden administration claims that postponing the move has nothing to do with Alabama's strong new pro-life law — or the fact that one of its U.S. senators, Republican Tommy Tuberville, is blocking military promotions until the Pentagon reverses its unconstitutional policy on taxpayer-funded abortions. But insiders say otherwise.
"The belief," one U.S. official told NBC News, "is they are delaying any move because of the abortion issue." Another confirmed that report, saying, "This is all about abortion politics."
To Tuberville and other Alabama leaders, the idea that this president would base his decision on a radical social agenda over Space Command's best interest is astounding.
"Multiple independent, nonpartisan government reviews have found Space Command headquarters would be best served in Huntsville," the coach explained. "... Two independent studies from the Department of Defense inspector general and the Government Accountability Office nonetheless affirmed the process that ranked Alabama as the best choice for the Space Command. Colorado didn't make the top three."
Even Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colo., who stands to lose the program from his district, hopes the White House is "professional enough to make national security the focus of how they make their decision."
That's optimistic considering the Democrats' track record of ideological retaliation. In the last several years, we've witnessed the weaponization of government against pro-lifers, parents, and Christians, statewide travel bans against red states for democratically-enacted laws, and even the defection of major league sports from conservative regions — all at the Left's prompting.
If Joe Biden continues his party's tradition of punishing states he disagrees with, then, in the words of the iconic robot, "Danger, Will Robinson!"
Do we really want to go down this path as a nation where we allocate resources based on which party's values are in control? If this president starts basing his decisions about government facilities on the extreme ideology of his base, it will open the door for Republican leaders to be pressured to do likewise.
As we've seen with the debt ceiling debate, conservative voters are no longer satisfied with promises and platitudes; they are demanding the GOP confront the dangerous policies of the Left. In a nation that's already hyper-politicized, this would mark a devastating shift in how an already-dysfunctional Washington operates.
Letting the abortion lobby preempt logic and reason is no way to run a country. If we allow this president — or any president — to elevate politics above our national security, then we might as well hand over the country's keys to China.
When access to abortion is more important than fighting and winning wars, this Space Command debate proves that we are light years away from creating the strong defensive posture we need to confront America's present and future threats.
Tony Perkins is president of Family Research Council. He previously chaired the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Tony is the host of a nationally syndicated program, "Washington Watch with Tony Perkins." He is a pastor, Marine veteran, and former police officer. Read more Tony Perkins reports — Here.