White House to Authorize Indefinite Detention

Detention center is ugly but necessary, writes Michael Gerson

(NEWSER) - Guantanamo Bay is an ugly place to Americans and the rest of the world but there's no point in closing it just for the sake of symbolism, writes Michael Gerson. George Bush decided against closing it because of the problem of what to do with the detainees. President Obama opted for symbolism, but the shutdown attempt has been badly bungled by Eric Holder, Gerson notes in the Washington Post. More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama's task forces on the detention and interrogation of terror suspects will miss today's deadline for reporting their findings, the Washington Post reports. The review on detention policy has been given a 6-month extension, raising fears that the Guantanamo Bay prison may not be closed in January next year as promised. The task force on interrogation of future detainees has been given another two months. More»

President to sign bill allowing indefinite detention of Americans

(NEWSER) - President Obama is taking a lot of heat today for dropping his threat to veto a controversial defense bill that could allow the military to capture and indefinitely detain American citizens on US soil. In a fiery editorial, the New York Times today called it "a complete political cave-in, one that reinforces the impression of a fumbling presidency," saying it had too many objectionable parts to name. Other criticism has included: More»

White House: But we're still closing Gitmo

(NEWSER) - The federal government not only doesn't know where Osama bin Laden is, it also doesn't seem to know where it would put him if he's ever captured. CIA director Leon Panetta told senators yesterday that the terror kingpin would be held in Afghanistan and moved "probably to Guantanamo" if the agency ever gets its hands on him, AP reports. A White House spokesman, however, stresses that the administration still plans to close the detention center. More»

Admin Says It's Open to Further Talks

(NEWSER) - There was a time when the White House and Sen. Lindsey Graham seemed close to striking a bipartisan deal on closing Guantanamo Bay and other national security issues, but in May those talks “went completely dead,” Graham tells Politico . “They could never quite pull the trigger,” he adds, suggesting that the administration was unwilling to take on such a heavy issue in an election year. More»