A troubling trend has emerged in American politics: conservatives in congress, conservative presidential candidates, and the conservative punditry have staked out radical positions that continually oppose the Pentagon's efforts to keep America safe.  On major issue after major issue confronting the military and our nation's security, conservatives have time and again attacked the military's advice in order to both obstruct progress and score political points against the Obama administration.  This politicking, which is often based on factual distortions, has pitted the conservative movement against the very institutions that safeguard our freedom and security.  As NSN Senior Advisor Major General Paul D. Eaton, U.S. Army (Ret.), recently wrote: "No one is safe it seems" from these pundits. 

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Closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay is important to the national security of the United States.  The Guantanamo Bay facility remains a dangerous recruitment tool for terrorists, obstructs our country's ability to obtain international cooperation on counterterrorism, and violates our country's best moral and legal traditions - our most valuable weapons against terrorism.  In addition, closing the facility is a crucial component of America's overall counterterrorism approach.  Despite a  recent poll by CNN finding a drop in public support for closing the facility, which comes amidst politicization by extreme conservatives against the Obama administration's attempts to shut the facility down, both military leaders and national security experts from across the political spectrum agree that it is still crucial for Guantanamo Bay to be closed. 

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Yesterday, a number of senior counterterrorism officials and experts testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on U.S. efforts to combat extremism.  Daniel Benjamin, the State Department's coordinator for counterterrorism, stated that the "primary goal of countering violent extremism is to stop those most at risk of radicalization from becoming terrorists."  National security experts agree that a strategic and farsighted counterterrorism policy takes the fight to terrorists globally and gets results through military, intelligence and law-enforcement means. 

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Tomorrow, the Senate Armed Services Committee is holding a closed door hearing on progress toward the closure of the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, with Special Envoy for Guantanamo Bay Ambassador Daniel Fried and senior officials from the Departments of Defense, Justice, and the intelligence community. Closing the prison, which has become a recruiting tool for terrorists worldwide, is part of the Administration's broader counterterrorism strategy.

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This weekend saw a continuation of two parallel trends.  First, Generals Colin Powell and David Petraeus continued the trend of America's top national security experts supporting the Obama administration's national security policies.  Powell and Petraeus expressed support for a range of policies including prosecuting terrorists through civilian trials, closing Guantanamo Bay, and ending the use of torture or "enhanced interrogation techniques." The annual meeting of the CPAC (Conservative Political Action Committee) conference demonstrated the second trend: conservatives politicizing national security.

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A year from the day the President pledged to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, a task force led by the Justice Department issued its recommendations on how to get the job done safely. Overheated conservative rhetoric and the legacy of the Bush administration's "sloppy" and incompetent handling of detainees have contributed to delays and obstacles.  But the facts laid out by military and intelligence leaders remain the same - closing the facility will make America safer.

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News that some detainees released by President Bush have returned to militant activity is a strong reminder of the persistent challenges America faces in dealing with terrorism.  But while this reminder should make us all vigilant, it does not change the national security imperatives for closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. 

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Today, the Obama administration announced that five terrorists tied to the 9/11 attacks will be brought to justice in civilian courts. Our nation has a strong tradition of convicting some of the world’s worst terrorists in civilian courts. From the mastermind of the first World Trade Center attack to Zacarias Moussaoui—the "20th Hijacker"—to the shoe-bomber Richard Reid, our prison and court systems have a long track record of keeping our communities safe while bringing dangerous terrorists to justice. The Obama administration is applying the same record of success to the Mastermind of 9/11. In fact, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, where these men will be tried, has a long track record of prosecuting terrorists, including Ramzi Yousef.

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After a week of intense international engagement, the administration’s top foreign policy officials hit the Sunday morning talk shows to discuss the difficult foreign policy decisions that lie ahead. Fareed Zakaria laid out the stakes for the Administration, taken together: “He wants to demonstrate at home that engagement does not make America weak.” This weekend, the President’s top advisors took on a number of serious issues: Afghanistan, Iran, Russia, the detention center at Guantanamo Bay – and confirmed that the Administration is moving forward with its core strategy of strength through engagement while carefully considering the implications of its policy decisions. On ABC’s ‘This Week’ Bob Woodward drew a contrast with the past: “As we all know from covering George W. Bush, all you had to do was find out what his gut was and then they would have meetings about how to implement what his gut was. In this case, I don’t think Obama has a gut, and he has opened the door very aggressively to other options, and they’re not going to be rushed.”

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Eight years ago today America was attacked. Today we pause to look back and honor those who died as well as those who struggled and sacrificed to defend us on that day and ever since. As we look back, it is worth remembering how eight years ago the world rose united in grief and support, and how Americans rose to support each other and to turn new attention to foreign affairs. But this year, significant steps from the Obama administration have changed the way we fight terrorism – changes that are making us safer today and in the future, and once again inviting the world to stand beside us united.

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