[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 67 (Monday, May 4, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5045-S5046]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 GITMO

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, with the administration still unsure of 
what to do with the detainees at Guantanamo, Attorney General Holder 
has described its arbitrary closing date as one of his most daunting 
challenges. Secretary Gates said some would be released or transferred 
overseas, some tried in American courts, and the administration doesn't 
know what to do with 50 to 100 who can't be released or tried. Clearly, 
the administration lacks a plan and a safe alternative for closing 
Guantanamo. Let me make a suggestion. The administration should 
reconsider its arbitrary deadline on Guantanamo, as it has reconsidered 
its commitment to arbitrary withdrawal deadlines in Iraq. Once the 
administration has a plan to safely detain, prosecute or transfer these 
detainees, Congress should be consulted and briefed to evaluate the 
proposal. With no safe alternative, this is the only sensible approach.
  No American will penalize the administration for putting safety over 
symbolism. Europe should not either, since it has been far more 
critical than helpful. It is increasingly clear that working through 
the problems related to Guantanamo will require time and close 
consultation with Congress. The Senate voted 94 to 3 against sending 
detainees to American soil even if only to prisons. Let me say that 
again. The Senate voted 94 to 3 against sending detainees to U.S. 
prisons, not to mention the possibility that they would simply be 
released into neighborhoods. Secretary Gates has conceded that no one 
wants these detainees in their communities.
  The legal authority for releasing trained terrorists is in question, 
a concern the administration hasn't publicly

[[Page S5046]]

addressed at all. The administration hasn't decided if it will use the 
military commissions process that Congress passed on a bipartisan basis 
at the suggestion of the Supreme Court.
  Finally, the administration hasn't said how it plans to deal with the 
problem of terrorists we release returning to the battlefield even, 
even as DOD has confirmed that 18 of the prisoners we released have 
returned to terrorism and that at least 44 are suspected as having done 
so.
  The American people want to keep the terrorists at Guantanamo, out of 
their neighborhoods and off the battlefield. At this point, the only 
way we can assure them that neither one of these things will occur is 
for the administration to keep this secure facility open until it 
develops a sensible plan for the Congress to evaluate. We remain a 
nation at war with ground forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Despite 
disagreements over the best way to combat international terrorism, the 
truth remains that we haven't been attacked at home since 9/11. That is 
a record we wish to continue. Maintaining a safe and secure way to 
detain terrorists is a critical part of protecting the American people.
  I yield the floor.

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