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Friday 30 august 2019

New challenge heard

to Trump's emergency

for border wall

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — liminary injunction.
Legal groups are mount- Kristy Parker, a lawyer for
ing another challenge to the legal group Protect
President Donald Trump's Democracy Project, says
use of Pentagon fund- the lawsuit makes broader
ing for a border wall one arguments than the case
month after the Supreme presented to the Supreme
Court ruled in Trump's fa- Court.
vor. The Justice Department
A judge heard arguments argues Trump's declara-
Thursday in El Paso, Texas, tion of a national emer-
over a lawsuit filed by the gency to fund the wall
local county government cannot be reviewed by
and an immigrant advo- any judge. The depart-
cacy group, the Border ment declined comment Defense Mark Esper holds a document he sign to establish the U.S. Space Command with Gen.
Network for Human Rights. Thursday. John "Jay" Raymond, left, President Donald Trump, third from left, and Vice President Mike Pence,
U.S. District Judge David Crews in Arizona and New right, during an event in the Rose Garden of the White House, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019, in Wash-
Briones didn't immediately Mexico are currently build- ington.
rule on a request for a pre- ing sections of barriers.q Associated Press
Continued from Front certain, that Congress will space responsibilities. Air
Congress has inched to- approve a Space Force in Force Space Command
ward approving the cre- the 2020 defense bill. currently deals with more
ation of a Space Force de- The people in Space Force than three-quarters of the
spite skepticism from some would be assigned to mis- military space mission, and
lawmakers of both parties. sions directed by Space it is expected to only grad-
The House and Senate bills Command, just as mem- ually hand off those duties
differ on some points, and bers of the Army and other to the new command.
an effort to reconcile the services are assigned to an Johnson, the CSIS expert,
two will begin after Con- organization like U.S. Strate- said the attention to space
gress returns from its August gic Command. during the Trump admin-
recess. Like other branches of the istration has led some to
When Jim Mattis was de- military, Space Force would exaggerate the scope of
fense secretary, the Pen- be headed by a four-star change reflected in the
tagon was hesitant to em- general who would have moves to create Space
brace the idea of a Space a seat at the table with Command and Space
Force. Trump's first Penta- the other Joint Chiefs of Force. These moves, she
gon chief initially saw it as Staff. Trump wanted Space said, "seem very flashy and
potentially redundant and Force to be "separate but fun" but are not.
not the best use of defense equal" to the other servic- "It's really just a reorganiza-
dollars. His successor, Mark es, but instead it is expect- tion of functions that are
Esper, has cast himself as ed to be made part of the already happening within
a strong supporter of cre- Air Force, similar to how the the military," she said.
ating both a Space Force Marine Corps is part of the Air Force Gen. John "Jay"
and a command dedicat- Navy. Raymond will serve as the
ed to space. Reestablishing Space Com- first commander of U.S.
"To ensure the protection mand has been a less po- Space Command. He
of America's interests in litically contentious matter. currently heads Air Force
space, we must apply the There is a consensus that it Space Command.
necessary focus, energy is the most straightforward At his Senate confirmation
and resources to the task, step among those pro- hearing June 4, Raymond
and that is exactly what posed to shore up space made the case for chang-
Space Command will do," defenses. ing the way the military ap-
Esper said Wednesday. "This step puts us on a path proaches its space mission.
"As a unified combatant to maintain a competitive "Unfortunately, our adver-
command, the United advantage," Gen. Joseph saries have had a front row
States Space Command Dunford, chairman of the seat into our many suc-
is the next crucial step to- Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at cesses and have seen the
ward the creation of an a National Space Council advantages that they pro-
independent Space Force meeting last week. He also vide us," he said. "And to
as an additional armed ser- endorsed creating Space be honest, they don't like
vice," he added. Force, saying it would make what they see. And they're
Kaitlyn Johnson, a defense a "profound difference." rapidly developing capa-
space expert at the Cen- Initially, the opening of bilities to negate our use
ter for Strategic and Inter- Space Command will have of space and to negate
national Studies, said she little practical effect on the advantage that space
considers it likely, but not how the military handles its provides."q