Guantanamo Bay Terrorist to be Iowa’s Next Door Neighbors?
- Monday, November 16, 2009, 5:11
- Iowa, National, News Center
- 974 views
- 9 comments
RPI Chair Strawn Calls on Braley to Reverse Support for Housing Guantanamo Detainees along Iowa Border.
Amid weekend reports that a prison complex mere miles from Iowa is emerging as the leading contender to house Guantanamo Bay terrorist detainees, Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Matt Strawn called on U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley to reverse his support for allowing these detainees to be brought to the United States for prosecution and incarceration.
Strawn noted that Braley, who represents the neighboring Iowa’s First Congressional District, had the opportunity just last month to vote to keep these terrorist detainees out of the United States when over 80 Democrats joined congressional Republicans to go on record in opposition to brining terrorist detainees to the United States.
“On the only vote specifically related to keeping these terrorists off American soil, Braley voted to welcome them with open arms. Now Iowans face the prospect of them being housed minutes from our state,” said Strawn.
“These terrorists pose a clear threat to the national security of our nation. It is time for Congressman Braley to stand up for his constituents, admit he was wrong, and tell President Obama that these prisoners are not welcome in the Heartland.”
On October 1, 2009 Braley voted (Roll Call #746) “no” on a vote to block terrorist detainees from entering the United States. The legislation, a motion to instruct conferees to a Homeland Security spending bill, passed the U.S. House without Braley’s support, by a 258-163 vote.
On November 14, 2009 numerous media outlets reported that Thomson Correctional Facility in Thomson, Illinois has emerged as a leading contender to house Guantanamo detainees. Illinois Governor Pat Quinn and U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) have both endorsed the proposal.
Strawn noted that Iowa’s Republican members of Congress, U.S. Reps. Tom Latham and Steve King both voted in support of the legislation keeping terrorist detainees out of the U.S. Additionally, Illinois U.S. Rep. Donald Manzullo, whose district includes Thomson and the prison complex, also voted to keep detainees off U.S. soil and opposes housing them at Thomson. Thomson is on the east bank of the Mississippi River, approximately ten miles from Clinton, Iowa.
Editor’s Notes:
Roll Call vote #746 can be found here.
House votes against bringing Gitmo detainees to U.S., Oct. 1, 2009.
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9 Comments on “Guantanamo Bay Terrorist to be Iowa’s Next Door Neighbors?”
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The RATS are trying to sell this bad idea as a job creation move. They claim it will create “thousands of new jobs”.
These are GOVERNMENT jobs–which are parasitic to the economy. We don’t need them and how many prisoners will be coming so if it requires thousands to take care of these terrorists, how much does it cost to take care of each one of them?
Why not leave them at GITMO? I’ve been looking for a sane reason to close GITMO and I can’t find it.
Elections have consequences, folks. You want more of this kinda crap? Vote Dimocrat!!
I am not “excited” about this “opportunity” as much as Durbin and others are… this is less than 100 miles from my front door.
why was a “state of the art” prison built and not occupied in the first place? Seems to be like bad governance from the start.
from what I’ve read, the people of the City of Thompson are generally for the occupation but this is just wrong. Leave ‘em in Gitmo.
I also agree with Rudy – trying the terrorists in NYC is an unnecessary risk.
Why are you so afraid of these guys, Carolyn? They’re not Superman. They’re not going to break out of a high security prison and come to your door 103 miles away and do something to you.
Have some confidence in our prisons and our police. Whether the Gitmo folks are in Thompson, IL or New York, NY…they’re not going anywhere.
Carolyn has a point when asking the question about why you would build a “State of the Art” Prison and then leave it empty, especially when prison overcrowding seems to be a nation wide issue.
As for the terrorists being moved to the US, it doesn’t bother me. The civilian courts and prisoners of this country have been dealing well with both foreign and domestic terrorists for years. I’d even be ok with it if they were put next door to me in the facility in Newton.
Overall, the point should be that these guys should be given their day in court. Holding them indeifinately without charging them or putting them on trial only serves to aid their cause.
It all comes down to one question: Are these guys POWs or not? If they are Prisoners of War, then the Geneva Convention actually prohibits placing them on trial in civilian court during the war. If they are NOT POWs, then how come they were given the status of captured enemy soldiers from the time they were taken into custody? If you are a POW, you get a pass on being tried for “attempted murder” or other crimes against American Soldiers, because you’re part of a recognized military force.
What’s going to be tricky is how they handle any Gitmo detainees who manage to get acquitted because of suppressed testimony or evidence. The Obama administration members questioned by the media since this announcement would rather give their favorite recipe for fetus barbeque sandwiches than go on the record about what happens if KSM or his ilk get acquitted. Jake Tapper & some other members of the White House press corps have tried to pin down “Baghdad Bob” Gibbs on this issue, but he keeps saying that “they are all certain that the result of these trials will be acceptable to America”.
This brings up a good question: How do they KNOW that the results of the trial will be acceptable? My guess? Even if the terrorists are acquitted in court, the Obama administration would NEVER let them go free. If KSM walks away free from a trial in the shadow of where the Twin Towers used to stand, no amount of presidential security in the world could protect the White House from the mob that would converge on Washington. So (in my opinion), the Obama administration is going to roll the dice on the judicial process & then circumvent the process if they don’t get the result they want.
This can only end badly for President Obama and reflect well on President Bush. If evidence collected under Bush convicts KSM and his ilk, then the treatment of detainees was NOT illegal, and Bush’s team did it right. If KSM and his ilk go free because of suppressed evidence, or if methods and agents are given away in open court due to discovery by the defense, then it will reinforce President Bush’s decision to NOT try these guys in American Courts because of their unique status. Either way, Bush wins & Obama loses.
Amendment to that last sentence: Bush wins, Obama loses, and America REALLY loses.
This has GOT to be the dumbest decision since George Lucas created Jar Jar Binks.
How many hog confinements are up-wind in range of the IL. prison?
They need to build hog confinements all around that prison facility. I’d do my patriotic duty and be an investor.
I understand wild hogs are very prolific. Let a few loose in the area and hope they breed like rabbits.