Obama admin eyes big changes at Guantanamo Bay

[babylonsister]

Posted with permission.

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/obama-admin-eyes-big-changes-guantanamo-bay?cid=sm_fb_maddow

Obama admin eyes big changes at Guantanamo Bay
04/22/15 04:19 PM
By Steve Benen


Late last year, a reporter asked President Obama whether the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay will be closed by the end of 2015. He didn’t answer directly, but he committed to doing “everything I can to close it.”

To that end, there was quite a bit of activity around that time to transfer approved detainees from the prison, reducing Guantanamo’s overall population to 122. The Washington Post reports today that the race is on to lower it further before Congress ignores the military’s advice and makes further transfers impossible.

Facing a potential showdown with Congress, the Pentagon is racing to move dozens of detainees out of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in coming months before lawmakers can block future transfers and derail President Obama’s plan to shutter the U.S. military prison.

As a first step, officials plan to send up to 10 prisoners overseas, possibly in June. In all, the Pentagon hopes that 57 inmates who are approved for transfer will be resettled by the end of 2015. That would require “large muscle movements” by at least two countries, which officials hope will each agree to take in 10 to 20 Yemeni detainees, who cannot be repatriated because of security conditions in their war-torn homeland.

An unnamed defense official told the Post, “I am aware of the clock ticking.”

The deadline, such as it is, does not refer to a specific expiration point, so much as it relates to Congress’ plans. It’s already clear Republican lawmakers intend to prohibit all future transfers, and though such a bill would draw an inevitable veto, things get trickier if Congress adds the policy to the next Pentagon spending bill.

If the administration can move 57 prisoners before this happens, the detainee population will shrink to just 65 individuals. The White House hopes that the arithmetic would then become undeniable, even to GOP lawmakers – spending millions of dollars on a detention facility that the military wants to close, and which undermines the United States’ global credibility, all to lock up 65 people who could easily be moved to secure domestic facilities is ridiculous.

The same article, however, included a tidbit I haven’t seen reported anywhere else.

Specifically, the Washington Post’s piece said that if Congress freezes the Guantanamo Bay population, White House officials are “exploring options for the unilateral closure of the prison and moving detainees into the United States.”

The same article later repeated the exact same point: “White House officials are exploring options for the unilateral closure of the prison.”

Well, that would be interesting, wouldn’t it? I’m no expert in military criminal justice, but I thought the whole point of the debate in recent years is that the White House doesn’t believe it has the authority to act unilaterally, so it’s looked for every possible legal and practical opportunity to circumvent unnecessary restrictions.

If the president’s legal team is rethinking this assumption, it will make for a rather volatile fight with Congress.

Look for more on this on tonight’s show.

Postscript: It’s worth emphasizing that for all the talk in Republican circles about respecting the wishes of our military commanders, in this case, U.S. military leaders, including the current chairman of the Joint Chiefs and several of his recent predecessors, have urged lawmakers to end this nonsense and allow the prison to close. At least for now, Congress continues to ignore military leaders’ advice.

[arcane1]

1. Stupid question: where is the money coming from to move those 57?

Wasn't the whole closure thing about money?

[delrem]

2. nope, the whole closure thing wasn't about the money required to move those 57.

Just think it through.

[TheKentuckian]

5. Money to build a new Gitmo North Supermax facility. Did you see Bush needing special appropriations

to try, transfer, or release? Of course not, no administration has had to go to Congress to beg for money to move prisoners in the Federal system.

There were no restrictions until around May 20th of 2009 and Obama signed them into law himself.

He wanted to have it both ways and close Gitmo while for all practical purposes still having it so he hatched a scheme that absolutely would require appropriations building a fucking Supermax.

Until he then signed his handcuffs resulting from pushback he could have moved , released, or took to trial completely unchecked. He didn't want to, probably for political reasons so his expensive and stupid solution as well as signing that counter constitution bill was the failure.

[PowerToThePeople]

3. why the fuck does that place still exist? n/t

[justiceischeap]

4. I can't help but think this was floated out as s distraction

from TPP.

I'm happy that Guantanamo is closing but they're still keeping those people imprisoned and none of us really knows if they should be or not.

[Cali_Democrat]

6. They should not be imprisoned

Because they haven't been charged with anything.

[bigwillq]

7. Yup.

Charge them or let them go.

But, 'Merica.