[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 168 (Friday, December 17, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H8772-H8773]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              DETENTION FACILITIES AT GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I come to the floor this 
evening to again make the case for why the detention facilities at 
Guantanamo Bay should remain open and why Khalid Sheikh Mohammed--or 
any other hardened terrorist currently residing at Guantanamo Bay--
should never be transferred to the United States to stand trial or for 
continued detention.
  When a clear majority of the American people support keeping Gitmo 
open--as you can see from this chart to my left, Madam Speaker, this 
pie chart basically says, when you ask the American people what should 
happen to Guantanamo, fully 55 percent say keep it open. Only 32 
percent are in favor of closing Guantanamo Bay detention facility, and 
13 percent had no opinion.
  Well, Madam Speaker, President Obama made closing Guantanamo Bay an 
immediate priority upon taking office, and he pledged to close the 
facility within his first year in office. It has indeed been troubling 
that the administration, in its push to close Guantanamo Bay to, so-
called, ``improve'' our world standing, has succumbed to letting 
untruths dictate the popular story line about how the United States 
treats its detainees. Rather than expend the effort to correct what 
have become blatant fabrications, they continue to fight--even as 
recently as this

[[Page H8773]]

week--congressional attempts to ban any transfer of detainees to the 
United States.
  Put simply, Madam Speaker, Guantanamo Bay has been and remains the 
best option to detain terrorists that pose a threat to our national 
security at home and abroad. Let me be clear. Guantanamo Bay houses 
some of the most dangerous terrorists in the world, some of whom have 
succeeded in their plots to kill American citizens and soldiers. Yet, 
despite their record of plotting attacks on civilians, beheadings, and 
using innocent women and children as shields, our military personnel 
provide the detainees with a host of rights, privileges, and, yes, 
indeed, respect.
  If the administration won't tell the full story about how we treat 
Guantanamo detainees, Madam Speaker, then I certainly will.
  Among the rights and privileges extended include 24/7 medical 
service, comprised of things like annual dental checkups, eye exams, 
physical therapy, mental health services, and one medical staffer for 
every two detainees. Detainees are afforded anywhere from 4 to 20 hours 
of outdoor recreation daily; are allowed unmonitored legal 
communication, have access to more than 15,000 books, magazines, and 
DVDs in 18 different languages; and they are, indeed, allowed to 
observe their religious customs. Cultural and dietary needs are met. 
Each detainee receives up to 6,800 calories per day, with six menus 
from which to choose. No wonder the average weight gain, Madam Speaker, 
has been 15 to 20 pounds.
  That's the reality of Guantanamo Bay. Having gone to these lengths, 
it is simply, to me, incomprehensible that we would spend hundreds of 
millions of dollars to transfer these detainees to our shores and make 
accommodations for them within our borders, especially with a $13.8 
trillion national debt that's only growing.
  Furthermore, Madam Speaker, terrorists who cannot be prosecuted 
should not be released. This is particularly true given that the 
recidivism data that was released just last week indicates that up to 
25 percent of those released from Guantanamo Bay have reaffiliated with 
terror groups and rejoined the fight against us, continuing to kill 
Americans.
  Madam Speaker, the American people know that the Gitmo detainees--
which include terrorist trainees, terrorist financiers, bomb makers, 
Osama bin Laden's body guards, terrorist recruiters, and would-be 
suicide bombers--are not minor offenders by any means. Indeed, 
attempted attacks on our homeland in the skies over Detroit, in the 
streets of New York City, and in a courthouse square in Portland, 
Oregon, remind us that the battlefield is not limited to our efforts in 
Afghanistan and Iraq.
  Those that seek to do us harm should never be transferred to our soil 
or tried in our Federal court system, where they would essentially be 
provided the same protections under our Constitution as the very U.S. 
citizens they would love to kill.
  Transferring terrorist detainees to the U.S. could eventually lead to 
their release--on American soil, Madam Speaker, putting our own 
citizens at risk. Indeed, any facility where they could be held--
whether for trial or lifelong detention--could itself become a 
terrorist target.
  Simply put, the American people believe that bringing Guantanamo Bay 
detainees to American soil--for any purpose--putsAmericans at risk and 
is a national security threat. The President and his Administration 
would be wise to listen to the voice of the American people, follow the 
lead of this Congress, and keep Guantanamo Bay open.

                          ____________________