December 23, 2010

Why is Obama's plan to close Guantanamo "in shambles"?

David Remes, lawyer for 14 detainees, says:
“From the outside it appears to be in shambles because he was never sufficiently committed to the success of his own plan and, as a result, Republicans were able to mobilize to turn the issue against him and he provided the Congressional Democrats no leadership.”
I'm guessing it's in shambles because Obama faced the reality that closing Guantanamo is a bad idea.

22 comments:

Michael K said...

Most of his plans were bad ideas. Gitmo, DREAM act, Spending us into bankruptcy, using the "stimulus" to fund state governments that let them put off reform for another year. It was all bad.

Anonymous said...

The fact of the matter is that Barack Obama does not have the power to close Guantanamo Bay and he never did.

Democrats need to get comfortable with that.

Barack Obama is not in charge of this.

We are.

Barack Obama is in charge of homos.

He won that.

We're in charge of the important shit.

Anonymous said...

Like all self-righteous acts it failed to take into account that others might be good too.

Like Bush and the people that first pondered and decided we needed a Guantanamo.

Unknown said...

Most of The Zero's "ideas" were positions he could take "against" what Dubya was doing. No real thought.

His stand on Iraq boiled down to, "I was against it fi-i-irst. I was against it fi-i-irst.".

And, contrary to Dr Krauthammer, it explains why he's had his head handed to him this month.

AllenS said...

Obama was a bad idea.

traditionalguy said...

My hunch is that Obama has intentionally skirted this issue just like he does the gay issues and the Afghan war issues. He doesn't intend to waste political capital on those . His eye stays fixed on the prize of using the Global Warming Hoax strategy to cut off our oil, coal and gas in order to bankrupt the USA, thus end the USA's military dominance so we must fit of necessity into an international Government that has ALL nuclear capacity. Who needs to arouse any enemies when that much is at stake. The Start Treaty is already in the bag.

Anonymous said...

Whoops.

I made an error before.

I said Obama was in charge of the homos.

I was wrong.

I thought Obama repealed Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

But according to CNN's web page just now, Robert Gates is giving the homos the bad news that, no, in fact, Don't Ask Don't Tell is still in effect.

And will be.

For a long.

Long.

Time.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/12/23/gates.dadt/index.html?hpt=T1

So, I stand corrected.

Obama isn't even in charge of the homos.

Penny said...

Obama's plan isn't "in shambles".

Instead, Congress took the Guantanamo monkey off of Obama's back, and placed it firmly on their own.

It's a wonderful thing when the President can get both Democrats and Republicans to cooperate!

Right?

After all, the American people wanted nothing to do with housing these detainees in their own states.

Political capital for ALL!

Phil 314 said...

well consider the alternatives are:
a) release to other country and:
-allow them to be tortured and worse
-OR- (if a European country)
- set free
b) civil trials in the US which leads to bad PR and ......(wait for it)

indefinite confinement regardless of outcome

I'd say shambles is looking pretty good. Just consider it OJT

Big Mike said...

I'm guessing it's in shambles because Obama faced the reality that closing Guantanamo is a bad idea.

I guess you're right.

Automatic_Wing said...

I dunno if Obama thinks it's a bad idea, but it certainly doesn't seem to be very important to him. `

george said...

I always assume that Obama does not think through the consequences of any position he takes. He is very shallow and he compounds it by being intellectually incurious.

DaLawGiver said...

Read my lips, no new taxes.

I did not have sexual relations with that woman.

Mission accomplished.

Gitmo will be closed within a year.

Paul said...

That's the thing about being a REAL President instead of a make-believe presidential candidate.

You can blab all you want as a candidate, say the most stupid thing to. But when you become president you will find reality is not what you thought it was.

Obama, while having the learning curve of a brick, still has SOME learning curve. And that is why Gitmo will stay open.

Opus One Media said...

..or bush has screwed up the legal/trial implications to the point that it is hopeless?

Anonymous said...

"... or bush has screwed up the legal/trial implications to the point that it is hopeless?"

So. What does that have to do with anything.

Barack Obama claimed he would close Gitmo and transfer Bush's "victims" elsewhere.

He can do that.

He is President.

He is the Commander In Chief. Gitmo is a military installation.

Barack Obama merely has to order the military to close the prison and transfer its inhabitants somewhere else.

He has complete and total power to take that action.

But he won't.

Because he wants to use that in the 2012 election. He wants to promise you that if you'll only vote for him one more time ... THEN ... THEN he can close Gitmo.

And you'll vote for him again.

Because you're such a fucking moron that you believe what Barack Obama tells you.

Toad Trend said...

Community organizers do not care about all consequences, only that they whip up the citizenry into a frenzy.

This is exactly how he came to be elected. Smoke, mirrors, and bullshit.

Hey HD, you can spell 'bush' using the letters from 'bullshit'.

Known Unknown said...

Issues always look different from then other side of the Oval Office. That's why presidential candidates will continue to say ignorant, feel-good things to try and sway the electorate.

Known Unknown said...

And that is why Ex-Presidents tend to be all chummy after they're out of office.

Phil 314 said...

.or bush has screwed up the legal/trial implications to the point that it is hopeless?

Damn you President Bush! (fist shaking)

former law student said...

Like Bush and the people that first pondered and decided we needed a Guantanamo.

A place under US control, but beyond the reach of US law.

How well did that work out?

On this theme, I see Yoo stepped in it again:

Another misinterpretation of US law in the case of wiretapping the al-Haramain Islamic Foundation, led to a federal judge's awarding them $2.5 million in attorney's fees. And yet Berkeley continues to let Yoo grade students' blue books, despite his multiple misinterpretations of US and international law.

How much is a Boalt degree worth these days?

former law student said...

Barack Obama merely has to order the military to close the prison and transfer its inhabitants somewhere else.

Congress specifically defunded any such transfer.

Maybe Obama could have a bake sale to raise funds?