Leave a Comment

TD Blog Interview with Almerindo Ojeda
the talking dog — ... detailed and dignified narratives overwhelm you. The Talking Dog : Where do you see the Guantanamo situation going now that we have inaugurated as President (my college classmate) Barack Obama? Do you see any possibility the framers of the prior policies might be brought to account for their actions? Almerindo Ojeda : President Obama issued four amazing executive orders just today regarding our responses to the war on terror. Much to celebrate about that, especially (1) the recognition of Common Article Three of ...

Obama Signs Five Executive Orders In First Three Days
Nice Deb — ... From the Obama White House website: January 22, 2009 Review and Disposition of Individuals Detained at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base and Closure of Detention Facilities Review of Detention Policy Options Ensuring Lawful Interrogations Just between you and me…..if he actually goes through with this…and even one of these detainees goes on to kill American soldiers again on the battlefield, or civilians in a terrorist attack, there will be hell to pay. If there is another ...

Photo of the Moment: Changing of the Guard
The BRAD BLOG — The photo above was taken on Jan 20th, 2009. President Obama has since signed an Executive Order calling for the closure of Gitmo within a year.

Rep. King Fear-Mongers On Obama’s Plan To Close Gitmo: It Could Give 9/11 Mastermind A ‘Path To Citizenship’
Think Progress — Yesterday, President Obama signed an executive order requiring that Guantanamo Bay be closed within a year. Obama’s order has been criticized by some conservatives, such as Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI), who issued a statement saying that it “places hope ahead of reality” and was “unnecessarily risking the safety of our nation.” Discussing Obama’s plan to close Guantanamo on Mike Gallagher’s radio show yesterday, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) claimed that Obama’s actions could be “the beginning of ...

For Detainees, Obama Off to Good Start
Antiwar.com Original — ... a comment that he made at his inauguration, when he stated, "As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals," and also said, "This is me following through on not just a commitment I made during the campaign, but I think an understanding that dates back to our Founding Fathers, that we are willing to observe core standards of conduct, not just when it's easy, but also when it's hard." Executive Order on the Closure of Guantánamo T he first of yesterday's four important documents orders Guantánamo to be closed "as soon as ...

"Closing" Guantanamo
Left I on the News — Barack Obama has issued an order to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo (not, needless to say, the equally egregious 50-year occupation of Guantanamo itself). The press treatment has been interesting. I've seen headlines reading "Closed!" as if it were already closed, and on CNN an anchor referred to the "imminent" closing of Guantanamo. Really? I don't have children, but if I had a young child precocious enough to understand the meaning of the word "imminent," I'm pretty sure if I promised to deliver a great present "imminently," I'd have a temper tantrum on my ...

Guantanamo EO photo op collides with reality as Saudi arrests more Gitmo grads
Flopping Aces — ... In truth, the appearance of immediate reversal of the controversial detention policy was little more than a photo op. The promise to close the facility was inked, but the details on what to do with the detainees vague. Per the EO language on the closure, any remaining detainees at the time of closure were to be released, or transferred… somewhere. And anyone not fitting those two categories were to be prosecuted… again somewhere under some court determined by a “review” and an appointed Special Task Force (see the ...

Guantanamo EO photo op collides with reality as Saudis arrest more Gitmo grads
Flopping Aces — ... In truth, the appearance of immediate reversal of the controversial detention policy was little more than a photo op. The promise to close the facility was inked, but the details on what to do with the detainees vague. Per the EO language on the closure, any remaining detainees at the time of closure were to be released, or transferred… somewhere. And anyone not fitting those two categories were to be prosecuted… again somewhere under some court determined by a “review” and an appointed Special Task Force (see the ...

Rep. John Conyers: Our Responsibility
Politics on HuffingtonPost.com — The Obama era began in earnest last week, with bold action such as closing the Guantanamo Bay prison camp and promising to end torture. In its very first days, the new administration has begun to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding executive branch operations, and has made great strides forward on fundamental challenges such as energy and the environment, and above all the national economic crisis left in the wake of the Bush Presidency. While great challenges and much hard work remain, the way forward is bright and clear. As we proceed, ...

Obama's Guantanamo?
Antiwar.com Original — ... the category of distraction as well – distraction, that is, from the far grimmer and more important American detention facility at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Distracted or not, for at least five years some of us have been seeking the hidden outlines of the torture story. Now, President Obama has given it a visible shape by providing a potential endpoint if not to our investigations, then to our focus. Much of what we focused on in these last years he's declared to be history. Guantánamo will be closed within a year and the American role in the war in Iraq will end as ...

Youth Radio -- Youth Media International: Young America's Report Card on Obama's 100 Days
Politics on HuffingtonPost.com — Originally published on Youthradio.org, the premier source for youth generated news throughout the globe. By: King Anyi Howell My uncle, a journeyman carpenter, would tell me when working on a job with him, "Even if you don't know what to do, just hammering nails into the wall is better than doing nothing. There's no wrong way to start to get to work." So when I think about President Barack Obama's first 100 days, I've got to give the man credit for banging through a bunch of controversial issues. --he's issued an order to close Guantanamo. --he's reached out to ...

Hasty Decisions
Patterico's Pontifications — ... Barack Obama was inaugurated President of the United States on January 20, 2009. As one of his first acts, he signed an Executive Order on January 22, 2009, ordering the closure of the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base: ...

Cheney’s So-Called Guantanamo Recidivists
Firedoglake — photo by piotr.amigo There's a number of impressions I get from the DOD "report" on the number of Gitmo detainees who have joined terrorists groups, including al Qaeda, since being released. First, while it appears to be what ABC billed it as--the report showing 14% of the people freed from Gitmo purportedly ...

The impossible Gitmo deadline: 24 hours?
RedState: Conservative News and Community — It wasn’t until I read this AoSHQ post about the delay in the detention report (preliminary details here) that I started counting off the months on my fingers.  Six months from July 21st makes… January 21st, more or less. The work of a Justice Department-led task force, which had been scheduled to send a report on detention policy to President Obama on Tuesday, will be extended for six months, according to senior administration officials. A second task force examining interrogation policy will get a two-month extension to complete its work, which had also been due Tuesday. [snip] The officials said ...

ACLU Sends Defense Department Letter Requesting Information About Bagram Detainees
Think Progress — Yesterday the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sent a letter to the Department of Defense asking them to reconsider releasing information — such as “a list of names, citizenship, length of detention, [and] capture location” — about detainees held at the detention facility at Bagram air base in Afghanistan. The ACLU explains its decision to request the information on its “Blog of Rights“: Today, we sent a letter to the Department of Defense (DOD), asking them to reconsider their refusal to turn over information about the detention facility at Bagram in Afghanistan. The request is ...

Losing the Moral High Ground
Commondreams.org Views — ... Marine Brigadier General Michael Lehnert (Ret.), once tasked with setting up the detention camps at the Guantánamo Bay U.S. Naval Base, where more than 200 prisoners remain. "I think we should close it down. I think the information we're getting is not worth the international beating we're taking." President Barack Obama came into office promising to do just that. Less than 24 hours after his inauguration in January 2009, he signed an executive order requiring the "closure of the Guantanamo detention center no later than one year from the date of the Order." At the time, ...

Frida Berrigan: Losing the Moral High Ground
Politics on HuffingtonPost.com — ... President Barack Obama came into office promising to do just that. Less than 24 hours after his inauguration in January 2009, he signed an executive order requiring the "closure of the Guantanamo detention center no later than one year from the date of the Order." ...

Losing the Moral High Ground
Antiwar.com Original — ... Marine Brigadier General Michael Lehnert (Ret.), once tasked with setting up the detention camps at the Guantánamo Bay U.S. Naval Base, where more than 200 prisoners remain. "I think we should close it down. I think the information we’re getting is not worth the international beating we’re taking." President Barack Obama came into office promising to do just that. Less than 24 hours after his inauguration in January 2009, he signed an executive order requiring the "closure of the Guantanamo detention center no later than one year from the date of the Order." At the time, ...