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Obama Signs Order to Close Guantanamo

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Posted on Jan 22, 2009
Obama signs order
youtube.com

Making good on his pre-inaugural pledge, President Barack Obama signed an executive order to close the Guantanamo Bay prison within a year—and that was just one of three orders he inked Thursday, signaling a significant break from Bush-era “war on terror” policies.


CNN:

The president said he was issuing the order to close the Guantanamo detention facility in order to “restore the standards of due process and the core constitutional values that have made this country great even in the midst of war, even in dealing with terrorism.”

A second executive order formally bans torture by requiring that the Army field manual be used as the guide for terror interrogations. That essentially ends the Bush administration’s CIA program of enhanced interrogation methods.

“We believe that the Army field manual reflects the best judgment of our military, that we can abide by a rule that says we don’t torture, but that we can still effectively obtain the intelligence that we need,” Obama said.

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“This is me following through ... on an understanding that dates back to our founding fathers, that we are willing to observe core standards of conduct not just when it’s easy but also when it’s hard.”

A third executive order establishes an interagency task force to lead a systematic review of detention policies and procedures and a review of all individual cases.

The task force, Obama stated, will also “provide me with information in terms of how we are able to deal (with) the disposition of some of the detainees that may be currently in Guantanamo that we cannot transfer to other countries, who could pose a serious danger to the United States.”

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AP via YouTube:


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PatrickHenry's avatar

By PatrickHenry, January 25, 2009 at 1:02 pm Link to this comment

I hope Obama doesn’t stop at closing Guantanamo, I hope he returns it to the Cubans with an apology.

Okinawa should be next, and while we are at it bring the fleets home.  Might leave a contingent to fight pirates and escort the ships taking our military back from Iraq.

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By Folktruther, January 25, 2009 at 9:10 am Link to this comment

Good piece to your link, Crimes of the State.  Obama’s gesture is obviously a public relations ploy which keeps torture and arbitrary imprisoonment functioning under another guise.

But it is not obvious, I would guess, to most progressives.  It is becoming evident to me that progressives WANT to be deluded.  A simple brief article like this dispels the whole public relations effort, but most people prefer the public relations effort.

The central problme is not ignorance, not knowing, but NOT WANTING TO KNOW.  The American people do not understand how massively they have been deceived by American power, and do not want to know it.  It is un-Patriotic to know it.

The Bushites conducted a counter revolution to change the American power system and regress it to a trajectory of barbarism.  It legitimated torture, random imprisonment, lawlessness, enormous class ienquality, and military agression, all of which is justified by enormous irrationality.

Obama is continuing and consolidating the Bushite counter revolution.  But most progessives don’t want to know it.  The future doesn’t look good.

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By KDelphi, January 24, 2009 at 4:51 pm Link to this comment

“end to the war om terror”—except in Pakistan/Afghanistan and Waziristan.

Yeeahh…....

People really need to get a grip ln what can be accomplished her, and, more importantly, what will be. Peace monger Holbrooke..

You dont want to end up with mission accomplished on your face, do you?

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OzarkMichael's avatar

By OzarkMichael, January 23, 2009 at 7:34 pm Link to this comment

Here is the whole thing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7stBg2QZsg&feature=related

You will notice at the 6 minute mark Obama asks a cabinet member to tell him what the executive order means. The guy tells Obama. Obama repeats it verbatum. This happens twice in 20 seconds.

It happens at other times during the signing.

If it was George Bush doing that, you guys would say he didnt know what he was doing.

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By espaz, January 23, 2009 at 6:54 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

I agree patric henry!!

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PatrickHenry's avatar

By PatrickHenry, January 23, 2009 at 6:20 pm Link to this comment

I think its a good start for his 2nd day in office.

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By Crimes of the State Blog, January 23, 2009 at 4:19 pm Link to this comment

Read the fine print. 

Obama’s orders leave torture, indefinite detention intact
- by Tom Eley

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By KDelphi, January 23, 2009 at 2:01 pm Link to this comment

Paolo—I am not a libertarian, but, I cautiously agree.

I didnt expect President Obama to do “what I wanted”—I knew that he wouldnt, on most things. But, this is a positive step. I dont know if it “ends the war on terrorism”. After all , we are adding troops to Afghanistan.

The ACLU says that it should not take a year—-lets see if it does.

I will say that I agree with the INTENT on this one. Please do not let fear derail it.

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By altara, January 23, 2009 at 5:10 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

CLOSING GITMO

It is like a breath of fresh air.  The new Obama administration has renounced torture, adopted real science, and ordered the closing of the prison at Guantanamo. The closing may take a year to complete.  A fair trial procedure must be established and a place must be found for those who can’t be proved to deserve continued detention and for those who must continue in confinement.

Right away we hear protests from residents and politicians in areas where there are prisons that are logical destinations.  “No terrorists” “Not in our backyard”  Here they are near prisons that house murderers, rapists, and street killers, complaining about a few foreign nationals with some connection to terrorist attacks.

And then there are nations that have refused to take back their citizens released from Guantanamo. With our new, more diplomatic and understanding foreign policy, perhaps we can now persuade them to change their minds.  A new coalition of the willing?

homer http://www.altara.blogspot.com

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By Jason, January 23, 2009 at 1:03 am Link to this comment

Re: Pissed of [sic] American

Your comment assumes that they’re terrorists.  Calling someone a terrorist means they’re guilty of a crime.  Guilt is supposed to be established by a trial.  These people are being held for years without a trial.  The presumption of innocence is a principle of fundamental justice.

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By jr., January 22, 2009 at 8:30 pm Link to this comment

Closing gitmo for the next four years is not doing away with it completely.

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By Pissed of American, January 22, 2009 at 8:16 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

So the number one agenda is to give terrorist more rights? Why don’t we just wine and dine them maybe that will get them to talk.

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Paolo's avatar

By Paolo, January 22, 2009 at 6:57 pm Link to this comment

As a libertarian, I have to say this is an encouraging step in the right direction. We’ve still got a helluva long way to go to end the insane idea of a world American empire. But this is a good, first step.

I’m surprised, but pleased.

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By Maani, January 22, 2009 at 4:52 pm Link to this comment

Dihey:

While I sort of sympathize, I think you are being too cynical.

First, Obama is not only closing Gitmo, but ending torture, forcing the CIA to close secret prisons, ending “special rendition,” and generally bringing back the “rule of law” to this aspect of policy.  And he is supported in all these things by Gates, Clinton and other top staffers.

Second, give him time.  Given that he was a constitutional law professor, I would find it odd if he did NOT begin to undo many of the outrageous intrusions on civil liberties, freedom, privacy, etc.  Habeus corpus, posse comitatus, etc. are all likely on the drawing board.  But they are not all going to get done overnight, either politically or socially.

Be patient.

Peace.

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By dihey, January 22, 2009 at 4:23 pm Link to this comment

Nothing will have changed until President Obama states unequivocally that he will restore “habeas corpus” to its full and original power. He should stop playing with the idea of yet another kind of court to try inmates of Guantanamo.

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By Rudy, January 22, 2009 at 4:11 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

I’ve imagined we were moving towards a day when bloggers would no long call the place Gitmo.  It seems that day has arrived.

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