Congresswoman Mary Fallin (R-OK) has introduced a bill prohibiting federal funds from being spent on transferring Guantanimo Bay prisoners to Oklahoma. The bill, HR 701, is sponsored by Fallin's fellow Oklahoma Republicans John Sullivan, Frank Lucas and Tom Cole along with Democrat Dan Boren. This is the entire Oklahoma caucus.
http://www.ktul.com/...
What prompted this hysteria, according to Boren, is that
a list of U.S. military installations with detention facilities would include Fort Sill near Lawton, despite the fact that the detention facility was closed in a past round of the base re-alignment and closure process, or BRAC.
It seems that, in 2007, a list of potential sites for the relocation of Guantanimo prisoners was put together by the House Armed Services Committee. The complete list is below:
·Fort Leavenworth, Kansas;
Fort Knox, Kentucky;
Fort Sill, Oklahoma;
Fort Lewis, Washington;
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina;
Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California;
Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California;
NAVBRIG Norfolk, Virginia;
WPNSTA Charleston, South Carolina;
NAVSTA Pearl Harbor, Hawaii;
SUBASE Bangor, Washington;
NAS Jacksonville, Florida;
NAS Pensacola, Florida;
MCB Quantico, Virginia;
Edwards Air Force Base, California;
Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico; and
Lackland Air Force Base, Texas
Says Boren:
This legislation would help ensure that Oklahomans are not forced to confront the kind of evil that these terrorists clearly represent."
Says Sullivan:
Relocating those who mean us harm to American cities is a huge step backwards in the war on terror and a danger to our homeland
It has been pointed out over and over that U.S. prisons already house brutal murders, as well as international terrorists. But it isn't just a fear that walls can't hold these prisoners. Congressman Frank Lucas took to Redstate to blog about his concerns. He writes:
America has one of the highest legal standards in the world, making it very difficult to try and convict criminals. While this is set up to protect American citizens, in this instance, it would allow some of these terrorists to be released because of loopholes.
Evidently "no evidence" is now a loophole. Because if prosecutors can't come up with a good case, after having years to put one together, then they have already failed to protect the country. Lucas and the rest of the Oklahoma caucus's complaints are misdirected and transparently partisan. Where was the pressure on the Bush administration to do their job-build a case against these prisoners and convict them. Surely if they are as dangerous as we are being told, it can't be that difficult.
But here's the real kicker. In his Redstate post, Lucas writes:
Last week, President Obama issued an executive order closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, which houses thousands of suspected terrorists and enemy combatants.
Orly?
Mcjoan quotes John Boehner, on Meet the Press:
[W]hat do you do with these 270 prisoners?
270, Congressman Boehner? Actually, according to mcjoan, Boehner is wrong and Gregory didn't bother to correct him. There are actually 245 prisoners in Guantanamo.
270 to 245 isn't that big of a difference, but I don't think its too much to ask that a person in Boehner's position speak accurately. But thousands? Congressman Lucas can't keep anything safe, because he doesn't know what he is talking about. Step back Congressman, and let the adults handle things.