Executive Order Being Prepped: PEBO to Close Gitmo

Some of the detainees, in reaction to their internment over the years without any recourse, are being fed through their noses because they’re on a hunger strike. They apparently preferred a death by starvation to staying at Gitmo for another round of indeterminate years.

You all realize that the detainees down there are not people you’d want turned loose in your neighborhood. What other prison worries about how they hand the Kuran to you? Or worries about giving culturally appropriate food to the inmates? Or gives medical care? Oh, and Kat, anyplace else they would’ve been left to starve in their cells…not waste time with tube feeding.

Smoke screen to appease far left supporters. My bet is that it’s not going to close anytime soon. No other country will take these guys. Given the above comments, Obama is not going to free them in the U.S. or even probably jail them on our soil. It’s easy to criticize and feign moral superiority during a campaign. The game totally changes when you are the one in charge and being held responsible if the worst occurs. Obama is a talented politician who cares about the safety of his country and, agree or not, no matter the reason, the U.S. has not seen another attack since 9/11. Obama is not going to tempt that by changing very much on national security. He has already backed off on wire tapping and domestic surveillance. He’s not going to let these guys go either.

Maybe the Great O can open up all of our federal prisons, too! Wheeee! He’s such a humanitarian.

Bill- What other prisons hold prisoners indefinitely without determining their guilt or innocence and apply torture techniques? They’re not found in the developed world but in countries designated as a threat to our national security. Passing out Korans and forced feedings don’t negate those facts.

Obama is closing Gitmo……..what is going to happen to those that are there? They are going to be let lose to do harm the us again? Is he getting the right or good information on this?

His advisors are radicals. What else do you expect from him?

If it is decided some of those detainees cannot be housed in any Federal prison because of the danger to them and a special facility for them will be built, I wonder whose town will get the “honor”?
Having lived in a town where the main industry was a state prison, I know there’s a lot more to a prison than just the building and the prisoners.
Prisoners get visitors. In addition to all the lawyers, these particular prisoners will surely attract some visitors who are “persons of interest” to the Feds. So in addition to possible terrorists dropping in to stay for a few days, there will be more federal agents in town than the residents thought possible.
It will be interesting to see how it’s all handled.

It will be weeks – probably months – after Obama signs the order before Gitmo can be closed. Can’t ut aside the possibility of embarrassing GOP opposition to the move, trashing Obama and the Dems as being soft on terror and unable to handle national security.

come on now…what do you expect my little bots…. yesterday I said it will close in about a year and now…it will be closed tomarrow….. just pull my string and it might change again … but don’t worry my little minons… just ignor the man behind the curtin and drink the cool aid.

“Some of those poor people being held are completely innocent & should be released.”
And you know this how?

stupidity everywhere. If they are enemy combatants, then keep them at GITMO. If they are spies, shoot them. The one thing you never do is treat them as criminals.

Sounds like Obama has a good sense of balancing the principles of national security and the rule of law.
Much better than Bush.

Our own military studied this issue and concluded that the gulag approach resulted in a net loss for us on the terror front, because it helped the bad guys recruit many more new recruits than were taken out of circulation by these practices.
Some refuse to acknowledge these facts, and would prefer to see us continue Bush/Cheney detention policies, i.e. locking people up forever without even charging them with anything, because it makes them feel safer.
But the test of the merits of any particular tactic is NOT how it makes anyone “feel”. The test is does it WORK, and will it help us WIN in the long run.
It’s about time we started fighting this war intelligently.

“You tell me if Guantanamo should be closed.
Here is a list of offenses planned or perpetrated by this guy: ”
So put him on trial.
Btw would you be ok with a foreign government grabbing you, holding you without charges and torturing you?

“At least 10 detainees released from the Guantanamo Bay prison after U.S. officials concluded they posed little threat have been recaptured or killed fighting U.S. or coalition forces in Pakistan and Afghanistan, according to Pentagon officials.”
I’m shocked that after being held and tortured, people decided to again take arms up against the US! /sarcasm
That said, the number supplied by the Pentagon is 30 fighters have rejoined anti-American efforts out of 390 released.

“That said, the number supplied by the Pentagon is 30 fighters have rejoined anti-American efforts out of 390 released.”
And you seem to be perfectly content with that number. Go figure.

“That said, the number supplied by the Pentagon is 30 fighters have rejoined anti-American efforts out of 390 released.”
And you seem to be perfectly content with that number. Go figure.”
Versus the thousands of recruits that have gone on to kill many American soldiers because of Gitmo.
Versus the enormous damage that Gitmo has caused to our reputation and moral standing?
Versus the impact that falling of moral standing has with our allies whom we need to fight this war on terror?

It will be interesting to watch what happens when these released fighters all come back and give us a second nightmare.
I do think these extreme-left-wing viewpoints will be proven just a bit off-base.
At some point, when someone says they are out to kill people, then they do it and are captured on the battlefield, then there needs to be some way to deal with captured enemy combatants.
This “legalism” approach hasn’t worked, will never work and we need to either use military tribunals or send them to a country not so steeped in “enemy rights”. The only people it has worked for is the extremely left-wing liberal lawyers whose only interest is dragging such things out for more $$$.

Obama is simply the best and he will be the best president that we ever had despite the dire economic situation. He is balanced,thoughtful and loves his country. The guy is a thinker..quite unlike the current president..Obama seeks ideas from experts before making a decision..I have noticed that it is also very easy for him to say that he was wrong about an issue and apologize..Not Mr Bush..don’t you think he made mistakes during his presidency? Major ones..but the guy would not admit..some Americans call that strength..I think strength is the ability to change course sometimes when you realize that you are going down the wrong road. Obama is a good man and will be our best president.. hands down!

“Versus the thousands of recruits that have gone on to kill many American soldiers because of Gitmo.”
Yep. That’s the ticket. We detain enemy combatants captured in the field of battle and “poof!” thousands of terrorists appear out of whole cloth. Amazing how that happens. I think I hear the chants of “remember Gitmo!” as we speak. (Chuckle)
“Versus the enormous damage that Gitmo has caused to our reputation and moral standing?”
With whom? If others don’t like it, why should we lose sleep over it? We were the ones hit with terrorist attacks and we are the ones that are constantly targeted around the globe by terrorists simply because we support Israel and promote Democracy. I can certainly handle their jealousy.
“Versus the impact that falling of moral standing has with our allies whom we need to fight this war on terror?”
Horse-hockey. We have led the effort on the war on terror from the beginning, with the assistance of a broad coalition. Countries all over the world have stepped up their efforts on terror, and none will stop because of your or their impression of our “moral standard”.

weak, weak weak….as if terrorists respect our values anyway Obama. If they had, they wouldn’t be terrorists.

Stanley, I totally agree. Too many of our politicians refuse to budge on any decision that they have made, because of ego and pride. They will stay the course, even when they know that it may be wrong….This ain’t no john wayne movie….. Enough of the fake heros and “riding in on a white hat” crowd.
We will finally have an ADULT as Prez.!!!!!!

If the US courts can handle the likes of Timothy McVeigh, Theodore Kaczynski, John Walker Lindh, and Ted Bundy I am more than comfortable trusting them to handle terrorist captives as required.
I am NOT comfortable with the Executive brach setting up their own personal no-rights-allowed dungeon technically outside the jurisdiction of the Constitution (and bear in mind a US citizen was picked up in Chicago, designated an “enemy combatant,” stripped of Constitutional rights, and disappeared for over 3 years before the courts pried him loose…).

Concerned in OH: “The US Civil and Criminal Courts are supposed to handle military matters?”
Yes. The Founding Fathers were awfully clear about the President not being king, he has to share power. Period. The courts themselves don’t have to deal with it, they just have to agree the mechanism in place is appropriate.
Do you have a problem with how the courts dealt with Timothy McVeigh?

tony smith: “But the fine print, which no one reads anymore, will probably just order people to study how to close it….”
Fine print? That was the headline on his interview just yesterday. I understand the last 8 years may have made it tough to believe a president doesn’t lie and deceive as a matter of course, but at some point you have to believe your own eyes. Obama said it would be difficult to do, take some time, and he is going to do it. He will be up for review in 4 years and people will notice if it’s still open.

Concerned in OH: “I guess the next thing the liberals will impose on our troops is that they’ll have to read enemies their miranda rights before shooting at them.”
I’m more fearful of your apparent dream, allowing the president to point at someone on a whim, call them an enemy combatant and whisk them off to be tortured or simply disappeared forever. AS WAS DONE TO A US CITIZEN SNATCHED FROM CHICAGO. (Just because Padilla was a thug doesn’t make the wanton contempt for the Constitution any less chilling in its implications.)

Drug trafficking is an act of war?
You’re really comparing the capture of enemies on a battlefield that were shooting US troops to the extradition of Noriega?
Seriously? Do you really not see a difference between these things?
Posted by: Concerned in OH
Do you mean like Mexican soldiers on Humvees mounted with machine guns confronting border patrolmen?

When the right wingers speak they speak in mind numming rhetoric in predicting how Obama’s presidency will be
When left wingers speak they speak in explicit detail of how horrible the Bush presidency was …. heck even some right wingers say the same thing.
Facts trump speculation every time.
Talk to me in 4 no no 8 years when Obama leaves office about the facts.
Facts make more sense than looney rhetoric.

Concerned in OH:”You’re really comparing the capture of enemies on a battlefield that were shooting US troops to the extradition of Noriega?
Seriously? Do you really not see a difference between these things?”
Noriega was captured during a military invasion of Panama on an active battlefield hand tried in a civilian court. Two dozen of our boys dies on that battlefield. This is a direct example of a situation you confidently claimed had “entire history of civilization.” You honestly don’t see how a MILITARY INVASION OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY is somewhat akin to the war on terror?
I guess it doesn’t matter. There is no point in someone who is arguing a position regardless of how many supporting ‘facts’ are clearly shown to be fabrications or laughably ignorant.

flopez:”Obviously one cannot post that Obama’s pastor is kindred with these folks and that it took Obama 20 years to figure it out.”
You can say anything you want. I am simply posting honest, verifiable facts. Do you have a problem with the truth, or reality? It’s not my fault if they make you look woefully ignorant of reality (or like a jerk who holds honorably discharged Marines who have obeyed the law their whole lives in contempt)
jhw539
Perhaps you too have served with Marines. I’m certainly glad you hold them in such high regard. I’m glad you are contemptuos of the ignorant. A little pompous maybe, but what can one say about a wannabe smart guy.

flopez:”Perhaps you too have served with Marines. I’m certainly glad you hold them in such high regard. I’m glad you are contemptuos of the ignorant.”
Brother in law was a marine. Good man, as are his friends.
I guess I missed the ‘no such thing as a stupid question’ days in school. Ignorance was something to be embarrassed about and avoided through a bit of basic work. Nothing wrong with being a bit slow, but being smart and just too lazy to think isn’t impressive.

They are not US citizens. They are not in this country. They have not signed the Geneva Convention. Thus they have no rights other than fair treatment which they are now receiving. If we really want to treat them correctly we should treat them under the same rules that they use (there are no rules) so that they know we are serious. With all of this PC crap they will win because we will defeat ourselves.
How about before their release they get a one hour parachute packing lesson from a Army Airbone instructor then one hour to pack their parachute. Fly them over their own country and push them out the door with the chite they just packed. If they paid attention they might make it, if not then they can meet Allah.

I think Gitmo can wait, it should not be a priority. Obama should fix the GAY situation here in California first.

Concerned in Ohio: “Does it say in the Constitution somewhere that the Constituion applies to all citizens of the world? US laws are supreme and every one in every country must abide by them?”
Yes, the Constitution clearly give Congress power to create courts and define their jurisdiction.
Where was Noriega, captured in a military action in Panama for crimes he committed while in Panama, tried?

Bring them back to the Good Old USA!
Who is going to take them??
NY City? Washington, DC?
Maybe they can be Taxi drivers.
What you say? Who is going to take them?
Don’t everyone speak at once.

Obama thinks we need to go back to when Clinton was in office – a “softer”, “gentler” time when we allowed attacks on America – Trade Center 1, USS Cole, African Emabassy, and Trade Center 2 (terrorists were in this country and the CIA was gutted under Clinton’s watch).
With Panetta in the CIA, Obama will again gut our intelligence agency – just like Clinton – and will not go after terrorists. He just wants to get re-elected. Deja Vu.

Obviously civics is no longer being taught in school.
First, The US has the right under the constitution to prosecute anyone in the world for crimes against the United States.
Second, The world courts have all consistantly ruled that war crimes can be tried by the country against which the crimes were committed.
Furthermore the concept of Universal Jurisdiction states that war crimes in particular can be prosecuted by any nation state.
The International Criminal Court routinely handles war crimes for the world (some notable exceptions are Nuremburg, Rwanda and Yugoslavia which are seperate tribunals) The United States however is not a signatory to the ICC and therefore has not given up it’s jurisdiction over War Crimes to the ICC.
George Bush established the Universal Jurisdiction over terrorists (and he literally unsigned us from the ICC treaty) which gives the US the right to prosecute Terrorists.
Gitmo was used because it kept them off American Soil. Once on American Soil, Terrorists would gain access to our Federal Court system, and would eb granted many more rights than those in a War Tribunal would.
PEBO closing Gitmo is an honorable thing (on the surface) but like most things promised by PEBO, it is not easily done, nor will it work how he wants.
The minute he agrees that Gitmo is a travesty of Justice (which is about what he said) as President, then those in Gitmo can appeal to the US courts that they were subjected to cruel and unusual punishment, and they may win freedom. It is a can of worms that PEBO might want to avoid.

Jim Bob said: Excellent! Time to start cleaning up the mess our village idiot, Bush created.
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This village idiot kept us safe for 8 years and cleaned up the intelligence mess created by Clinton. He went after the terrorists whereas CLinton did nothing even when Sudan handed Osama do him on a silver platter. Now, we are back to square 1.

SuzyTheLiberal,
You say that Obama is really smart and will be able to tell which ones are Terrorists…
I completely agree with you, he and Michelle spent over 10 years with Ayers and Dhorn and REALLY know what a terrorist looks like.
LMAO!

That’s what we get for taking prisoners. You have to know in these politically correct times, the minute you put these terrorists in a detention camp the wheels start turning on how it’s unconstitutional and they must be let go. Like the cop who arrests the same guy for the same thing 5 times in a year. Maybe we should just settle it on the battlefield. Take No Prisoners!!

Obama needs to go one step further. Close Guantanamo Naval Base entirely. This anachronism left over from the Spanish America War is a blotch on our foreign policy and our image throughout the world. To maintain a military base on sovereign foreign soil, in a country that obviously doesn’t want us there, and in a location just 90 miles from our own land and therefore of no strategic value is ludicrous.
It is just a continual slap in the face to the Cuban people and their legitimate government (whether we like it or not), and all dates back to JFK and the fact that Castro kicked the mob out of Cuba when he took control. Get over it. Recognize Cuba, grant full relations, both trade and diplomatic with them, and get on with life. Not everybody wants to be our buddy or to adopt our government or our way of life. So what?

What Executive order is Obama signing in his first 100 days to keep Americans safe from Savage Foreign Terrorists?

Joe Have you looked around you lately, Bush has screwed up just about everything.
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Jim Bob,
Your boys gutted the CIA and never took down Osama when handed on a silver platter. Several incidents and 9/11 later, Bush stands up with the Military and takes down the Taliban.
Your think would enable even more 9/11′s. Go back to liberal land and dream of a world without islamic terrorism – say hello to Clinton and Obama while you are there.

CAn I ask this. What are we planning to do with the prisoners whose countries don’t even want them back? I am confused here. Hopefully not in my state or even near.

Problem with people is they can’t read, but only see their own biases.
“Part of the challenge that you have is that you have a bunch of folks that have been detained, many of whom may be very dangerous who have not been put on trial or have not gone through some adjudication. And some of the evidence against them may be tainted even though it’s true. And so how to balance creating a process that adheres to rule of law, habeas corpus, basic principles of Anglo-American legal system, by doing it in a way that doesn’t result in releasing people who are intent on blowing us up.”
President Elect Obama

The U.S. doesn’t want them. No state will accept them. No other country wants them. We can’t set them free. Where do they go? After we settle these minor problems, I know where they will stay! Gitmo.

Yes, it does sound like he’s going to handle the situation in the best way possible.
Almost none of these people have been proved quilty of anything. Some will be found guilty. For some there will be no proof and perhaps no guilt. It’s quite likely that some are not guilty at all.
I’m glad to see the United States will be moving in a better direction.

So far almost none of these people have been proved guilty. You can not presume all of them are guilty. We presume some of them are guilty and some will be proved guilty. Some of them are probably innocent. There may be some who are guilty but can’t be proved guilty. That will be discovered as a better process is applied, and there is no reason to believe a good resolution won’t be found.
A difficult situation, but no reason to believe a good resolution won’t be found.

“You can not presume all of them are guilty. We presume some of them are guilty and some will be proved guilty.”
Yes I can. None of these people are US citizens, so I am perfectly free to assume they are guilty.
And you are still ducking the question of what to do about the class of people who are ‘known’ guilty but arent proveablly so. If you bring them into the US, verses GITMO, you are going to have rules of evidence that decrease your ability to get a conviction. Plus you are going to have attorneys falling over each other to defend them so they can be the next William Kunsler.
“That will be discovered as a better process is applied, and there is no reason to believe a good resolution won’t be found.”
Magic smoke. There is no logic in believing that a magic process is going to evolve that will introduce conviction level evidence.

An over zelous jump is an improper move by Obama.
The combatant detainees should be handled carefully and not returned to Iraq or to supporters of their activity.
The POW camp is part of war. Every war and every Country has had them.
The terrible part of war is that it is hell.
I think detaining dangerous people as political prisoners should be humane. It is better to convince them we are good and not enemies to kill.
When war is resolved and over, they should go home to a Country unwilling to let them fight. They should be well fed and healthy when they arrive.
We have an option. Let press roam in Gitmo to see how they are treated to teach the enemies how not to behead and kill captured soldiers.

I agree with Mark. The presumption BertieW makes that Americans somehow deserve rights that other peoples of the world don’t is supremely offensive.
This same arrogance has applied to thinking America has the right to change the government of other countries, drop tons and tons of bombs on other countries, remove the resources of other countries and so on.
And no BertieW, regardless of your presumptions about truth and rights, you do not have the right to presume people are guilty.
No wonder large parts of the world looks at America as arrogant and hypocritical.

50 bucks says Obama will drag this process out soooooooo loooooong we will be hit agin before Gitmo closes and than it wont close cause we will be adding more terrorist to it!
Gitmo will never close!
its like Roach Motel.
They check in but they dont check out

Don’t wonder if you get attacked again. You are financing the genocide on Palestinians, provoking Iran into war. You could have stopped it any time. So if you get attacked again you deserved it.

What will happen to the terrorist at Gitmo? I guess Obama will give them medals and US Citizenships!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Close the Bastille!

Obama will sign the order to close Gitmo, however for security reasons they will take a year or 2 to completely do so. This way Obama can say he kept his promise while the miitary can still gleen as much info as possible before deciding what to do with this scum!!!

Our present enemy does not keep POWs. After a few days they murder our troops. It is time we repay the favor and do the “Eye for a Eye” thing. How much of our tax $$ do you think is spent harboring these thugs and keeping them special fed? They get a lawyer, our people get their necks shaved!! If Obobo sets them free….let it be done in Chi-Town. Maybe some of the killing they do will be aim at the worst political Regime to hit these United States!

all the people in gitmo are guilty. but we should abide by the geneva convention and close that consentration camp down there. america has gotten so evil under bush and his republican nazi,s we must clean up after him and appologize to the world for going astray. thankd god we have elected a desent god loving man instead of the demon we have had.

T
Wow, “concentration camp” huh?
I forgot that we are starving and gassing inmates there on a daily basis. What in the heck are you talking about??
Those filthy, stinking, terrorists get the occasional water dropped down their noses and you traitorous liberals compare that to treatment at Auschwitz. That is very scary and very sad.
Liberals really will not stop until America stands up and says…
“Terrorists, you were right! America is an evil country and you deserve to want to kill us. What can we do to make you like us more?”

I keeping with our nation’s self-proclaimed title of ‘Home of the Brave’ the Democrats have the courage to uphold our principles.

“Great. Instead of dropping water down terrorists’ noses to obtain vital information that has possibley saved millions of American lives,”
One problem with your Keifer fantasy….torture did not lead to any such scenario.
Bush was lying as usual.
What is with the right wing fetish with torture?

I love how right wingers complain when assault weapons (such as machine guns) are banned in inner cities and want to torture any and everybody that shows a sign of disagreement and somehow favors the death penalty. It seems the Republicans want to inflict more pain and death on people then any liberal does yet somehow liberals are anti-american. I guess to conservatives Americanism is pain, torture, and death to everybody.

dave—-that woudl be a start for us…we must stop getting into others lives. we took away the land from the palestiniens and gave it to the jews. and you wonder why they hate us. we told bin laden if he fought the soviet union we would help him out he did and we abandoned him…..all we do it seems is use to people to get what we want and then say the h with you. thats why the world hates that and we seem to think it is manifest destiny to spread our style of government to all nations.

Looks like Barack is off to a great start, on track to keep his word and restore some international credibility for the US