Senator Lindsey Graham Criticizes President Obama's Decision to Close Guantanamo Bay

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a member of both the Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees and a military lawyer, expressed concerns about President Obama's decision to close Guantanamo Bay and transfer terrorist detainees to a prison in Illinois. Graham argued that this decision undermines the war effort and makes the US less safe, as it gives terrorists access to civilian courts and compromises national intelligence gathering capabilities.

Key Takeaways:

• Senator Lindsey Graham opposes the transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to a US prison, arguing that it undermines the war effort and makes the US less safe.
• Graham believes that the detainees should be tried by military commissions, not civilian courts, to maintain the rules of the war and protect national intelligence gathering capabilities.
• He contends that under the law of armed conflict, enemy prisoners can be held indefinitely without trial, and some detainees may never have a trial.
• Graham points out that about 20 percent of released detainees have returned to the fight, and it would be a "huge mistake" to release those who pose a military threat.
• He suggests that the president has legal standing to keep detainees in prison under the law of armed conflict and would be willing to bring them back to the US for trial by military commission.

Statistics:

• 20 percent of released Guantanamo Bay detainees have returned to the fight (Source: Senator Lindsey Graham)
• 400,000 German prisoners were held on US soil during World War II (Source: Senator Lindsey Graham)
• The president has legal standing to keep detainees in prison under the law of armed conflict (Source: Senator Lindsey Graham)

Sources:

• Interview with Senator Lindsey Graham conducted by Jane Skinner on December 16, 2009 (Federal News Service, Inc.)
• Copyright 2009 by Federal News Service, Inc., Ste. 500, 1000 Vermont Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005 USA.