Litigation

When Will Gitmo Be Closed?

By Peter Hardin

In the face of significant political opposition and other pressing priorities, President Obama’s administration has “sidelined efforts to close the Guantanamo prison,” according to a New York Times article.

That means that closing of the controversial facility and fulfilling Obama’s pledge would be unlikely before he completes his term, in 2013, the newspaper added.

The Obama administration announced last year a plan to transfer some Guantanamo Bay terror suspects to a prison in northwestern Illinois, and to hold U.S. military commission trials there. It sparked criticism from multiple flanks (see Gavel Grab), and his administration has not done a lot to overcome the political barriers.

Adding to the challenge has been a shift in public opinion, perhaps fueled by attempted terrorist attacks on an airliner Christmas Day and on Times Square in May.A slim majority backed closing Guantanamo when Obama was inaugurated, but in March of this year, 60 percent favored keeping the detention facility open.

Expanding upon the article, Glenn Greenwald contended in a Slate commentary, “The reality is that closing Guantanamo has been discarded because of the Obama administration’s general embrace of the Bush/Cheney Terrorism template; if you are going to retain a system of due-process-free indefinite detentions, then closing Guantanamo makes little sense.”

Full post as published by The Gavel on June 28, 2010 (boomark / email).