Does the White House really believe that if it agrees to try KSM and the other 9/11 plotters in military tribunals instead of civilian courts, then in return Republicans will agree to shut down Gitmo and move its prisoners to a domestic site? I guess I was living in a cave this weekend or something, because I’d never heard about this.
But anyway, you will be non-shocked to learn that such a deal is vanishingly unlikely. Greg Sargent reports:
Don Stewart, a spokesperson for Mitch McConnell, tells me the GOP leadership position will remain the same: Guantanamo, not a U.S.-based facility, is the right place to hold the detainees.
Michael Steel, a spokesperson for John Boehner, suggests the same: “Our focus is keeping dangerous terrorists from being brought to this country, where they will have the same rights as American citizens.”
And Liz Cheney’s group, Keep America Safe, says No Deal. “We are concerned by reports that this will be part of a deal to close Guantanamo Bay and bring terrorists onto US soil,” a statement sent over by the group says. “We continue to call on the President to reverse his decision to close the facility.”
Big surprise, eh? I now return you to your regular programming.
