Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & Nightlife

« Oh, Barfield, Will You Never Learn? | Savage Love Letters of the Day »

Monday, January 12, 2009

Politics Obama to Close Gitmo Pronto!

Posted by Wm.™ Steven Humphrey on Mon, Jan 12, 2009 at 4:34 PM

From CNN:

President-elect Barack Obama plans to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay as early as his first week in office to show a break from the Bush administration's approach to the war on terror, according to two officials close to the transition.

One of the officials said it would be in keeping with Obama's campaign promise to shut down the prison through executive order, a move which was also pushed by last year's Republican presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona.

"The president-elect has repeatedly said the legal framework at Gitmo has failed to successfully and swiftly prosecute terrorists," said one of the officials close to the transition, who was not authorized to speak publicly about private deliberations.

Such a move would reassure those concerned after Obama's recent public comments suggested he may not immediately shut the prison down.

"It is more difficult than I think a lot of people realize and we are going to get it done, but part of the challenge that you have is that you have a bunch of folks that have been detained, many of whom who may be very dangerous who have not been put on trial or have not gone through some adjudication," Obama said on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday when asked whether he would close the prison in his first 100 days.

Obama also said he was trying to develop a process that "adheres to rule of law" but "doesn't result in releasing people who are intent on blowing us up."

Share via

Comments (11) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

Be still my beating heart!

Posted by tomasyalba on January 12, 2009 at 4:42 PM

He might issue an order to close it on day one, but it won't be closed that day. His original point is still valid, and if those prisoners weren't intent on harming the US when they were abducted, they probably are now. They can't just pat everyone on the head and let them leave. Some of them have trials coming, and I'm guessing they'll have to pay some kind of reparations to the others. It's gonna take MONTHS to sort out.

Posted by pox on January 12, 2009 at 4:49 PM

Good move.

Posted by PC on January 12, 2009 at 5:22 PM

Great, just what this ailing economy needs...a whole bunch of unemployed torturers.

Posted by Emily on January 12, 2009 at 5:35 PM

of course he also won't prosecute anyone for torture.

Posted by lmsw on January 12, 2009 at 5:47 PM

Obama also said he was trying to develop a process that "adheres to rule of law" but "doesn't result in releasing people who are intent on blowing us up."

THAT's MY MAN !!

Posted by thank you for not blowing us up on January 12, 2009 at 5:52 PM

Aw, shucks. I was really hoping he'd keep it open so we'd have a place to send Bush and Cheney when they get convicted. Somebody sure as shit ought to chain them to a wall in painful positions for days on end. In between waterboardings, of course (hey, it's not torture, right?).

Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty on January 12, 2009 at 6:25 PM

Too bad he doesn't also oppose extraordinary rendition. We're just going to subcontract torture now. Big deal.

Posted by Trevor on January 12, 2009 at 8:54 PM

IT FEELS DAMN GOOD!

Posted by mAlissa on January 12, 2009 at 11:22 PM