According to U.S. officials the Obama administration is looking at closing down Guantanamo and transferring detainees to a prison in the United States. The two prisons that are being considered are either in Kansas or Michigan.
According to guardian.co.uk U.S. officials confirmed today the Obama administration is looking at transferring detainees at Guantánamo to an existing prison on the US mainland.
It has been
confirmed at the White House, Justice Department and other agencies the idea of a "courtroom within a detention facility" was being looked at.
According to KansasCity.com Fort Leavenworth is one of the sites being considered.
Administration are considering the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth because it is already a high-security facility. It could be further protected because of the surrounding military base.
There are inmates being held there so it is unclear what would happen to them. Almost half of the prisoners are members of the U.S. armed forces and the law states they cannot be held with foreign prisoners.
The congressional delegation of Kansas is dead set against using Fort Leavenworth for the detainees that are housed at Guantanamo.
In a statement Sen. Sam Brownback said, “Enemy combatants should under no circumstances be housed at Fort Leavenworth. It makes no sense to spend millions and millions of dollars to build what we already have at Guantanamo. And it makes even less sense to try to force-fit them at Fort Leavenworth, which is not well suited for this purpose.”
The Michigan facility being considered is Standish Maximum Correctional Facility (SMF), a maximum-security prison in Standish Michigan. This prison is scheduled to close in the fall as part of the states cost cutting measures to
close down eight prison facilities.
If this prison would be chosen it could inject an estimated $1bn a year into the state. It would help save 300 to 350 jobs at the prison.
Carl Levin (D) is in support of the transfer to Michigan. A spokesman for Levin, Tara Andringa
said, "If state and local officials are supportive, the senator believes the idea should be considered."
According to Mlive.com U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee and candidate for governor, said he plans to work to stop the plan. He said, "I intend to do everything possible to prevent it from happening. We need to preserve jobs in Michigan, but turning our state into a terrorist penal colony is not how to attract new families and business investment."
According to A.P. sources it would cost over $100 million for security and other building upgrades before the Standish facility could house the detainees.
