President Obama’s plan to close Guantanamo Bay prison camp is likely to go unfulfilled because administration officials say an executive order is not a viable option for obtaining the goal.
Eighty suspected terrorists are held in Guantanamo Bay prison. Those remaining were deemed too dangerous to be released in 2011 by a review board, but Congress has banned them from being transferred to maximum-security prisons in the U.S. Sources within the administration said keeping Mr. Obama’s 2008 campaign promise via an executive order is a legal hurdle too high to clear.
“It was just deemed too difficult to get through all of the hurdles that they would need to get through, and the level of support they were likely to receive on it was thought to be too low to generate such controversy, particularly at a sensitive [time] in an election cycle,” the source said, Reuters reported Monday.
Another source said the president must theoretically keep the executive order option on the table so progress does not “grind to a halt.”
The U.S. naval base in Cuba became operational in 2002 and once housed close to 800 suspected terrorists. The president’s goal at this point is to transfer as many prisoners as possible to other nations.
Reuters reported that 30 additional detainees are bound for other countries throughout the summer, but the those who remain would either be caught up in military commission proceedings or considered too threatening to release or transfer.
SEE ALSO: Obama’s summer Gitmo dump: Official says transfer of 24 detainees planned
I think the odds [of closing the prison] are probably challenging,” said Gregory Craig, who served as Obama’s first White House counsel, Reuters reported.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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