The Biden White House wants to leave the U.S. Space Command Headquarters permanently in its startup location of Colorado Springs, CO, NBC reported today.

The administration has “signaled the Pentagon and lawmakers that they want to reverse the decision” to move Space Command headquarters to Alabama, NBC news reported Monday night.

That decision, which has been rumored for several days, was “in part because of concerns about the state’s restrictive abortion law,” the story said. It quoted one unnamed U.S. official saying, “They are delaying any move because of the abortion issue,” referring to the White House and another unnamed U.S. official saying, “This is all about abortion politics.”

Abortion is illegal in Alabama today unless there is a serious health risk to the fetus’s mother. A proposed new law in the state Legislature would prosecute abortion as murder.

The NBC report says the White House ordered another review into how the decision was made to send the headquarters to Alabama. Former President Trump has claimed credit for the move, but Redstone Arsenal came in first in a formal and required Pentagon comparison of candidates from multiple states.

The NBC report said “Biden administration officials have signaled privately to Pentagon officials and lawmakers that they’re looking to reverse the Alabama decision.” The reason given in the story was not abortion but “concerns about operational disruptions that moving Spacecom’s headquarters, which is currently located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, could bring.” This is the argument Colorado lawmakers have been making for months.

The military’s Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process to fairly compare competing options to move or combine military operations was created to keep basing decisions from becoming political and based on objective pros and cons of bases being considered and generally ensure a level playing field. The BRAC process grades competing bases and communities on issues related to their ability to accommodate new troops and their families. Redstone Arsenal won that comparison for the permanent Space Command HQ that included such issues as quality of local schools, availability of affordable housing and a job market that would support servicemembers’ spouses.

Colorado lawmakers have fought hard to keep the headquarters in Colorado Springs, where the command was formed and where the Air Force presence is strong. They have quoted former President Donald Trump saying on an Alabama radio show that he – not the base comparison – decided to move the Space Command headquarters to Huntsville.

Now, Trump’s successor is reportedly deciding that it won’t move.