World

GITMO is Obama's Nightmare in the Making - New Laws Considered

by albertacowpoke | June 26, 2009 at 05:46 pm

111 views | 28 Recommendations | 3 comments

The first Executive Order signed by the new President was the order to close Guantanamo Bay within one year. The new Administration is realizing that this may be harder than thought.

Congress has denied the Administration funding for imprisoning detainees in the United States. Off shore nations, including Canada, declined to accept those released by he United States and State attitudes are "Not in my backyard".

Although no final decision has been made, the White House is considering an executive order to imprison indefinitely some prisoners that are considered to dangerous to release or prosecute.

This would be the third major Obama mandate on how to deal with and prosecutes terrorists and foreign fighters.

One White House official said, if issued such an order would not take effect until Oct 1st, the start of the new budget year (2010). The White House is also considering asking Congress to pass new laws to hold suspects indefinitely, the official said. This would be a major policy switch of the Obama Administration.

WASHINGTON -- So far stymied by Congress, the White House is considering an executive order to imprison indefinitely a small number of Guantanamo Bay detainees considered too dangerous to prosecute or release, two administration officials said Friday.

No final decisions have been made about the order, which would be the third major mandate by President Barack Obama to deal with how the United States treats and prosecutes terror suspects and foreign fighters.

One of the officials said the order, if issued, would not take effect until after the Oct. 1 start of the coming 2010 budget year. Already, Congress has blocked the administration from spending any money this year to imprison the detainees in the United States, which in turn could slow or even halt Obama's pledge to close the Navy prison in Cuba by Jan. 21.

The administration also is considering asking Congress to pass new laws that would allow indefinite detention, the official said.

0 See all footage | View Slideshow

Share: email story | add to any | Digg | facebook | stumbleupon

recommend This comment thread is now closed

Babel-Fish

at 18:49 on June 26th, 2009

It is difficult and Bush had made it that way. Obama really needs to close down the place even if it means bringing the prisoners that cause the main problem back to USA to be trialed and judged fairly. He may have to give US citizen ship to some of those that prove to be not guilty as they be executed if sent back to their own country.

albertacowpoke

at 03:31 on June 27th, 2009

I agree with you Babel. The problem is that he moved to fast in my opinion. There is not a lot of support Stateside for bringing the most dangerous of those prisoners into the States. That is primarily the crux of the problem. It may also take a little longer to relocate those that will never be charged. So his nightmare is really the time frame he set for himself when he issued the Executive Order.