Former Rep. Andrews ‘Alarmed’ That Gitmo May Not Be Closed Until 2011

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Former Rep. Tom Andrews (D-ME) released a statement today saying that he is “alarmed” to hear that the closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay will likely be delayed until 2011.

The New York Times reports that the Obama Administration is having difficulties raising the money to replace the prison at Guantanamo Bay. As a result, the prison likely won’t be closed until 2011 at the earliest, a far cry from the January 22, 2010 deadline President Obama promised shortly after his inauguration.

Now, former Andrews, the director for the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, has spoken out against the delay in a statement released today. He says that he is “alarmed to hear that Congress continues to ignore the advice of General Colin Powell and other respected military leaders who call for closing Guantanamo as soon as possible because its continued existence threatens our national security.”

He also says that “you would think that in the midst of a deep recession they might want to avoid wasting tens of millions of taxpayer’s dollars by continuing to spend twice as much money to incarcerate prisoners in Guantanamo as in a maximum security prison in Illinois.”

Here’s the full statement:

I am alarmed to hear that Congress continues to ignore the advice of General Colin Powell and other respected military leaders who call for closing Guantanamo as soon as possible because its continued existence threatens our national security. On top of that, you would think that in the midst of a deep recession they might want to avoid wasting tens of millions of taxpayer’s dollars by continuing to spend twice as much money to incarcerate prisoners in Guantanamo as in a maximum security prison in Illinois.

The willingness of some Democrats in Congress to join their Republican colleagues in undermining our national security by playing politics with Guantanamo is an outrage. If Congress really wants to protect our troops they should act to close Guantanamo now.

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