Today, John Boehner and the Republican House leadership are introducing legislation to keep Guantanamo detainees from being transferred to facilities in the United States.  They claim that this serves American security.  But the reality is that our criminal justice system has a long history of holding hardened terrorists successfully, including the perpetrator of the first World Trade Center attacks, numerous 9/11 conspirators, the Shoe Bomber and Timothy McVeigh.  The men and women who serve their country by working at these facilities are ready and eager to do their jobs – and they have the confidence of the communities that depend economically on prison facilities.  But John Boehner, Mitch McConnell and other Republicans in Congress continue to claim that the men and women who run our prisons and help keep America safe can’t do their jobs.

As long as it is open, Guantanamo Bay remains a black eye on America’s reputation and hampers our ability to pursue our national security interests.  A bipartisan group of five former Secretaries of State, including Colin Powell, Henry Kissinger and James Baker all agree that it should be closed.  Condoleezza Rice and Bob Gates both urged President Bush to close it.  The Obama administration has developed a plan for closing Guantanamo and the money it has requested is the start of a process that will unfold over the next few months.

The federal prison system safely holds or has held for extended periods of time a large number of convicted terrorists including:

• Ramzi Yousef. The mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombings was convicted and sentenced in 1998 by the Federal District Court in Manhattan and is being held at ADX Florence, the supermax prison in Florence, Colorado. [NY Times, 1/9/98. NY Times, 4/5/03]
• Zacharias Moussaoui. Convicting of conspiring to kill Americans for his role in the 9/11 attacks, Moussaoui is currently serving a life sentence at the supermax prison in Colorado. [NY Times, 5/3/06. NY Times, 5/14/06. NY Times, 5/5/06]
• East African embassy bombing perpetrators. Wahid el-Hage, Mohammed Sadiq Odeh, Mohammed Rashed al-Owhali, and Khalfan Khamis Mohammed are all serving in ADX Florence. [NY Times, 12/25/01]
• Richard C. Reid.  The so-called “Shoe Bomber,” Reid was convicted for trying to blow up an airliner over the Atlantic with explosives in his shoe.  He is currently serving a life sentence at ADX Florence. [NY Times, 1/31/03. NY Times,  5/14/06]
• Timothy McVeigh. Convicted of killing 168 people by blowing up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, McVeigh was held in ADX Florence until his execution on June 11, 2001. [NY Times, 6/11/01]
• Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri. The only person known to be held as an enemy combatant in the continental United States, al-Marri spent six years in the Naval Consolidated Brig in Charleston, South Carolina and is now being held in the Federal Correctional Institution in Illinois. [Associated Press Via Fox News, 5/1/09.  NY Times, 4/30/09]
• Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman. Responsible for plotting a series of bombings and assassinations, Omar Abdel-Rahman is currently serving a life sentence at Butner Federal Correctional Institution in North Carolina.
• Muhammad Salameh. Convicted for his role in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Salameh is serving a life sentence in ADX Florence. [Library of Congress, 9/99. NY Times, 3/5/94]

Communities around these facilities are able and willing to hold detainees.  The National Journal writes, “Indeed, as home to four major prisons, Leavenworth [Kansas] is known for being pretty good at locking people up. The U.S. Penitentiary, built on federal land abutting the Army post, held some of the worst criminals of the 20th century... ‘Prison City,’ as Leavenworth is sometimes called, is best known for the Disciplinary Barracks, the only maximum-security prison in the military. Operating since 1875, its current inmates include Ronald Gray, a serial killer entering his third decade on death row... Leavenworth itself has a long history of dealing with foreign enemies: Fourteen Nazi prisoners of war were transferred to the Disciplinary Barracks for killing other inmates, and Muhammad Salameh, who rented the Ryder truck used in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, served time at the U.S. Penitentiary. ‘Most of us who are former military in town are behind the effort, BECAUSE we know the capabilities of the USDB [U.S. Disciplinary Barracks] staff to handle the situation,’ [says] former Army Sgt. Jere Smith.” As another resident and retiree said, “We are a prison city; that's what we do." [National Journal, 1/31/09]

ADX Florence – America’s federal supermax prison – places prisoners in 23 hour-a-day lockdown and keeps them almost completely confined.  How do Boehner and McConnell expect them to escape?  The former warden at ADX Florence said on 60 Minutes, “Most prisoners spend up to 23 hours a day in their cells, every minute, every meal. The window in their cell is blocked so they can't see the mountains. Inmates can watch a 12" black and white television or read books to pass the time. And if they behave, they may get limited exercise in a one-man recreation pen.” And regarding Ramzi Yousef, the warden said, "Never been out, to my knowledge." [60 Minutes, 8/14/07]

In this time of economic hardships, residents of prison towns welcome the financial benefits of the high-profile prisoners. As a National Journal article says, “That sense of duty is matched by a cold pragmatism… ‘As any farmer knows, we should 'make hay while the sun shines,' wrote one resident, referring to the jobs, government contracts, and federal money that would accompany a prisoner transfer. The U.S. government is the lifeblood of Leavenworth; in 2007 alone, the county received federal funds amounting to $24,000 per capita. (The corresponding figure for Alaska, the leading state in terms of federal aid, was $14,000.) And as Colorado Governor Bill Ritter’s spokesman said about ADX Florence, "I think communities in Florence and in southern Colorado — where there are many prisons and correctional facilities — this is part of their community, they understand that." [National Journal, 1/31/09. Denver Post, 1/25/09]

Meetings between President Obama, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari continue for a second day.  The Obama administration is skeptical of President Karzai.

Afghan troops fired on rock-throwing protestors angry over the U.S. airstrikes that may have killed dozens of people this week.  The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David McKiernan dispatched a joint U.S.-Afghan investigative team to probe into the incident.

Pakistan attacked Taliban positions in Swat valley as civilians continue to flee.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates visited Kabul.  He also said that there are no plans to send U.S. ground troops into Pakistan.

The Czech Republic approved the Lisbon Treaty yesterday.  Ireland, Germany and Poland are now the only countries yet to ratify the agreement.

An Iraqi soldier killed a U.S. soldier embedded in his unit.

The U.N. accuses Israel of restricting development in Bethlehem, in the West Bank.

Commentary of the Day

Senator John Kerry and Rep. David Dreier discuss the importance of trade in bringing peace to Georgia and Russia and allowing the U.S. to form closer ties with both.

British barrister Philippe Sands explains how and why Spain could prosecute Bush administration officials for torture.

The New York Times pushes for more transparency on the torture memos.