[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 140 (Thursday, September 15, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1281]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        PRESIDENT OBAMA ENDANGERS U.S. CITIZENS BY CLOSING GITMO

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                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 15, 2016

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, sitting in Guantanamo Bay are cold-
blooded, calculating terrorists that have either already killed 
Americans or had planned to do so. The high-security prisoners that 
remain at GITMO committed some of the most repulsive crimes known to 
all of us.
  Despite this fact, this Administration--since literally day one--has 
promised to close GITMO all together and release these terrorists back 
into the world. Mr. Speaker, why would we do that?
  Many of the terrorists we have released have re-entered the 
battlefield. The Administration even admitted earlier this year that at 
least 12 former detainees were implicated in attacks overseas against 
Americans and our allies--and those are just the ones we know of. So 
why would we continue to let terrorists go?
  Mr. Speaker, I have been to GITMO. Most Americans would be surprised 
to know it's actually nicer than most facilities we have here in the 
states. GITMO has soccer fields, volleyball courts, table tennis, you 
name it.
  It also has new medical facilities and new dental facilities. When I 
visited GITMO, I ate the same meal the prisoners did, and the food was 
good.
  But the Administration is more concerned with the President's legacy 
than global safety and the potential victims of these prisoners' 
attacks. I do not think the White House has its priorities straight.
  That's why I'm happy to support Congresswoman Walorski's efforts to 
prohibit the transfer of any detainees from GITMO. Transferring 
detainees from Guantanamo endangers American citizens, and it endangers 
our national security. Put simply, it is a bad idea.
  And that's just the way it is.

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