Demint, Graham react to Guantanamo Bay closing decision

President Obama says Guantanamo Bay will close by the end of the year and he has asked Congress for nearly $800 million to close it. This worries South Carolina Senator Jim Demint.
“I’m afraid they’d be looking at Charleston, to the Charleston Brig, to put some of them and we’ve had to basically designate almost a whole section of that brig for one prisoner and the danger is always that there is gonna be some attack to free the person or some hostage situation. I just think it compromises our security and safety as a country to move those prisoners,” says DeMint.
DeMint says the last thing the Obama Administration should do is transport these possible terrorists to U.S. soil, and the president’s choice is very irresponsible.
Senator Lindsey Graham offers a solution:
“What we need to do from a national security perspective is reform our detention policy starting with our military commissions. So, I’ve been working with the administration and other members of the Congress to come up with new detainee policy that will work with current detainees and future detainees,” says Graham.
DeMint adds that closing Guantanamo has nothing to do with the security of the prisoners or the security of Americans.
“It’s all about our standing in the world, and the president has said that. The rest of the world does not like the fact that we’ve got these folks in prison and that we’re not putting them through courts,” says DeMint.
He says the U.S. needs to expedite moving these prisoners through our military courts.