Presenting … The GOP’s New “Keep Terrorists Out Of America Act”!
A House GOP staffer sends over a summary of the “Keep Terrorists Out Of America Act,” which the GOP leadership plans to unveil later today at a press conference, in keeping with the stepped-up national security attacks on Obama I noted here yesterday.
The bill attempts to place restrictions on transfers of Guantanamo Bay detainees to the United States, and has two primary features:
* It prohibits the Obama administration from transferring any Guandetainee to any state without approval from that state’s legislature and governor
* Before transferring any detainee to any state, it requires the administration to notify Congress of the name of the detainee, and to stipulate to Congress that the release would not hamper continued prosecution of the detainee and wouldn’t negatively impact the state’s population.
The political game plan, obviously, is to tie Obama’s closure of Guantanamo to the idea that its detainees could come to a community near you, in order to sow fears more broadly about Obama’s foreign and anti-terror policies. It’s also designed to pressure Congressional Dems, particularly in red states, to distance themselves from Obama’s policies or risk being painted weak on terror.
What’s interesting is that the GOP leadership keeps forging ahead with this strategy despite private worries among some Congressional GOP staffers and strategists that it makes the party look like its reverting to old fearmongering tactics. In an interview with me the other day, GOP pollster Tony Fabrizio responded to the new GOP strategy by asking: “What are we, in a time machine?”
The full summary of the “Keep Terrorists Out Of America Act,” to be introduced by GOP Reps Pete King and Pete Hoekstra, is right here.
The homepage of this blog is here. RSS feed here. Twitter feed here. Email me here.
First off this has absolutely no chance of getting passed. Second of all why in hell aren’t Democrats jumping all over this? They should come out and DEMAND an apology of the people promoting this bill to all of the Americans who are working in prisons and jails around the country, a thankless job, and insinuating that these people don’t know how to do their job and that they couldn’t possibly keep these thugs under wraps. I swear I am beyond frustrated that they are letting these dip sh*ts even go down this path. I understand that it probably won’t have any effect and that most people aren’t buying it but I just don’t believe in letting something like this slide.
This is just silly.
That’s all I can say about it – it’s silly. It’s like trying to turn Gitmo inmates into Willie Hortons and this is already old news.
I have all but run out of words for the lameness of the GOP. But every move they make lately is lamer than the one before.
@sgwhiteinfla- AMEN. If you do Twitter (I don’t) you should send that to Claire McCaskill or some other receptive Twitterer.
Paddy
.
I actually sent Claire McCaskill a tweet today about it but got no response. I am going to keep tweeting legislators though because if they came out today an had just one Democrat volunteer to take some detainees they would literally crush the GOP. Better still if they came to the press conference with a warden from one of their jails and legislators from that community to talk about how well they have done handling prisoners in the past and how they look forward to showing that Americans can hold any terrorist with ease in our jails then the GOP would go into a tailspin. I just don’t understand why they can’t see this.
I read the headline and mistakenly thought they might be calling for a search for domestic WMD and a commitment to destroying our stockpiles of chemical and nuclear and biological weapons.
Well, I can dream, can’t I….
“Well, I can dream, can’t I….”
O please do.
My co-blogger is hip with the Twitterati, so I’ll see if I can get her to back up your Tweet. If they did it as you laid it out, it’d crush their little fear mongering hearts.
Tena, you probably have a lot more current knowledge of prison custodial staff than I do, so you might be better able to comment on SG’s plan. It’s my sense, though, that a lot of guards tend to line up hard nose politically and wouldn’t welcome the idea of having Gitmo prisoners so they could show off their guarding skills. I think the GOP knows they can stir up some people with the idea that their communities will be likelier targets for terrorist attacks if they’re housing these prisoners. I know it doesn’t make sense, but fear never does. Remember all those little towns who thought they needed the same level of preparedness as NYC after 9-11?
The plan would be somewhat less ridiculous if the detainees had actually been given due process and were not merely suspects. What’s next? Move Gitmo to Mars lest these terrorists have a chance of swimming to Florida?
The GOP should just be honest and introduce their “Keep All Non-White, Non-Christian, Non-Heterosexuals Out of America!” Act. Get it over with.
Lovely (and relevant) bit of snark from David Kurtz on this:
“NOT AS BRAVE AS WE USED TO BE
Number of Gitmo detainees that the GOP hopes to keep off mainland U.S. soil with its “Keep Terrorists Out Of America Act”: roughly 250.
Number of Axis POWs detained in camps on the U.S. mainland at the end of WWII: roughly 425,000.”
The Republicans have always insisted that all the people at Gitmo are all “terrorists” and, whenever the torture issue is raised, the implication is that torture opponents are unwilling to get tough on those who arried out 9/11. So — taking them at their word — it seems to me that what the Republicans are saying now is that they’re too scared to bring these same perpetrators to the mainland. It’s not just an insult to prison guards, it’s an insult to all of us who would be proud to sit on those ******** for the rest of their natural lives. As a Virginian, I feel confident that my fellow citizens would fight for the opportunity to lock up real terrorists — we did it with Moussawi, and we’ll do it again, gladly. Of course, as pointed about above, the reality is we’re dealing with “terror suspects,” and even some who we no longer suspect but can’t get rid of — that complicates the deal, but it seems to me Republicans can’t go there.
Please forward your addresses to insure that these innocent victims housed at Gitmo can bunk in with you. — Three cheers for hope and change!
Everyone, including all the Republicans in Congress, know that this bill has zero percent of even coming up for a Congressional vote, no less actually passing.
This so-called bill is just another Republican attempt at “make believe” governance. Bereft of any meaningful philosophy or pramatic action for improving the nation, the rightwing nutjobs who run the GOP are performing their usual daily street theater show of appealing to their ignorant and uninformed and most times unthinking base.
The Republicans have this faux bill in reserve for their campaigning next November. They will use it to say that the Dems are soft on terrorists and are not protecting the country. Their base will eat it up. The majority of Americans will see this bill for the cynical trash that it is. Ditto for the rightwing talibangelical Republicans.
Please forward your addresses to insure that these innocent victims housed at Gitmo can bunk in with you. — Three cheers for hope and change!
Barry
Let me make sure I have you straight here — you think they’re all guilty of terrorism, but you’d rather not be bothered with imprisoning them here in the US? That sure is a change. Once upon a time Republicans said they wanted to bring these terrorists to justice — personally, I would be more than happy to invite the real terrorists for a long stay in the Commonwealth, and if you want the address or want to check out their accomodations just drive into Pound, Virginia and look for the sign that says Red Onion Supermax — or see here http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/local/daily/april99/supermax18.htm if you still think we can’t handle them.
What makes you believe that any of these perps would ever see the inside of a U.S. jail? If the Feds were to try that, habeas petitions for each and every one of them would be filed within minutes of their arrival. They’d be out on the streets within weeks.
What a great incentive for the jihadist community! Here’s how you get your free trip to the United States:
1) Attend terrorist training camp.
2) Take a potshot at U.S. troops in the field, and surrender before they kill you.
3) Wait. Room and board are provided courtesy of the U.S. taxpayer.
4) Be released into your new home country. We’ll even throw in some public assistance to sweeten the deal!
5) Now you’re free to destroy the Great Satan from within. Truly, God is great!
Perhaps we’ll have a terrorist registry, just like the ones for *** offenders. That’ll keep us safe, right?
This whole business of the closing of Gitmo is a circus, with the President playing the role of P.T. Barnum. Those who voted for him, of course, are the suckers.
mwl
I guessed you missed this story from June last year:
In a stinging rebuke to President Bush’s anti-terror policies, a deeply divided Supreme Court ruled Thursday that foreign detainees held for years at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba have the right to appeal to U.S. civilian courts to challenge their indefinite imprisonment without charges.
So your whole premise is BS — but other than that, great post!
And once again, let me say: it’s great to see how spineless all these tough-talking Republicans are when it comes to actually dealing with terrorists. Read the Red Onion article again and if you’re still scared to imprison these guys, you need help.
King, for real? You bleeding hearts choke when it comes to where your homies will be bunkin’. Those 17 Chinese terrs will be set free and will need to share your bunk. Give it up. As for Military versus civilian courts, they will dine on discovery and make 9-11 look like a picnic. I think all you jokers need to give it up for the cause.
This is another chapter in the GOP strategy related to the reality contained in FOX prime time programming. The torture policy was based on “24.” This policy is based on the “Prison Break.”
Why am I not surprised that some people refer to handling terrorists as silly. Bush is out of office folks, you can stop hating him now. The next attack is on Obama’s watch, so he might actually care. Also, another attack would really suck. But those silly terrorists better not be harmed right?
I’m a 15 1/2 year medically retired U.S. Marine. I’m not really surprised to read the rhetoric that I’ve read in these postings and to read the ignorance that I’ve discovered either. Why do we not want them on U.S. soil? Well, it has NOTHING to do with whether or not our guards can handle them so for those of you who got your diplomas out of a Kelloggs box, open it back up and put the diploma back in and throw the box away. Just like 9-11, American people in general have NO IDEA the kind of hatred that exists here. I do because I’ve fought against them and they hate everything we stand for. If you could actually see past the partisan lines that are currently blocking your view, you’d see this is a critical issue of national security. Civilian prison guards shouldn’t be the ones responsible for the handling of these idiots, it should be federal law enforcement (i.e. U.S. Marshalls, FBI, etc.). Civilian prison guards are NOT trained to handle detainees with this kind of mindset and neither are rednecks from VA or any other state. So stick it back in your pants, grab your beverage of choice and go back inside the house where you belong as you have no place on the front porch with the big dogs. While there IS a chance it may not pass, for those of you convinced it won’t, you need to research this a bit further. Once you do, then you can pull that Kellogg’s box out of the trash and pull that diploma back out of it. And by the way, for those who wish to contact me, 6453bill58438@live.com. Knowledge is power and it’s also something this group seems to be lacking according to what I’m reading on this blog. I think Pete King & Pete Hoekstra have the right idea. I’ve read nothing in this blog concerning America and it’s welfare itself, only concerning partisan lines and how many are more willing to stay on their side of them than cross them if necessary to do what’s right for the country.
Re: “Keep Terrorists Out of America Act”
Instead of this Terrorist Trail taking place in New York, why can’t it take place on a large battleship in U.S. Waters? Battleships have large meeting rooms that can accommodate reporters, camera news crews and comfortably the jurors. Defendants found guilty can be sent back to Guantanamo.
http://rivotril.uy.pl/ – rivotril faced with the drug, m can say that he is the best))))
Why They Don’t Belong in Civilian Trials:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBwGOOA7eXk
No fear mongering, just facts.
The ultimate bondage torture for misbehaving slaves, Galleries photographed and uploaded every wee
Member Entrance. [URL=http://woodenponybdsm.hu.pl/ – Wooden pony bdsm[/URL – is a popular punishement