Froomkin writes: "President Obama broke his cycle of empty veto threats over
Guantanamo on Thursday, sending a defense authorization bill back to
Congress with a defiant message: 'Let's do this right.'"
President Obama. (photo: Mark Wilson/Getty)
Rare Veto Keeps Obama's Options Open for Closing Gitmo
By Dan Froomkin, The Intercept
23 October 15
President Obama broke his cycle of empty veto threats over Guantanamo on
Thursday, sending a defense authorization bill back to Congress with a
defiant message: "Let's do this right."
It was only the fifth veto of his presidency, and came with a rare bit of
flare: a public announcement in front of video cameras.
"This legislation specifically impeded our ability to close Guantanamo in a
way that I have repeatedly argued is counterproductive to our efforts to
defeat terrorism around the world," he said. "Guantanamo is one of the
premiere mechanisms for jihadists to recruit. It's time for us to close it.
It is outdated; it's expensive; it's been there for years. And we can do
better in terms of keeping our people safe while making sure that we are
consistent with our values."
The Fiscal Year 2016 defense budget that arrived on Obama's desk earlier
this week attempted to ban all transfers of Guantanamo prisoners to the
United States, heighten the barrier to shift them overseas, and prohibit
moves to specific countries
He also cited concerns about the bill's use of a budgeting gimmick to
circumvent spending caps and its failure to adopt certain reforms, but
Obama was particularly explicit about rejecting Congress's attempt to keep
the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba open.
"Because of the manner in which this bill would undermine our national
security," he wrote in his official veto message, "I must veto it."
Obama had dramatically ordered the notorious Bush-era offshore prison closed
on his first full day in office, in 2009. But by the end of that year it was
already clear that his moral scruples were giving way to political
calculation.
He proceeded to repeatedly give in to Republican Congressional opposition.
For instance, the White House had previously threatened to veto defense
authorization bills that contained provisions blocking the closure of the
prison in 2011, 2012 and 2014, but Obama had backed down each time.
This time, however, his veto gives critics hope that maybe he would renew
efforts to close the prison before he left office.
The Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents many of the men
detained at Guantanamo, called the veto "important" but said in a statement
that "lawmakers' attempts to keep Guantanamo open for partisan political
gain are no excuse for President Obama's failure to close the prison."
The Center warned that if he lacks the political will to "take bold steps
now, he will fail to close Guantanamo, and that will be a central part of
his legacy as president."
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President Obama. (photo: Mark Wilson/Getty)
https://theintercept.com/2015/10/23/rare-obama-veto-keeps-his-options-open-f
or-closing-gitmo/https://theintercept.com/2015/10/23/rare-obama-veto-keeps-h
is-options-open-for-closing-gitmo/
Rare Veto Keeps Obama's Options Open for Closing Gitmo
By Dan Froomkin, The Intercept
23 October 15
resident Obama broke his cycle of empty veto threats over Guantanamo on
Thursday, sending a defense authorization bill back to Congress with a
defiant message: "Let's do this right."
It was only the fifth veto of his presidency, and came with a rare bit of
flare: a public announcement in front of video cameras.
"This legislation specifically impeded our ability to close Guantanamo in a
way that I have repeatedly argued is counterproductive to our efforts to
defeat terrorism around the world," he said. "Guantanamo is one of the
premiere mechanisms for jihadists to recruit. It's time for us to close it.
It is outdated; it's expensive; it's been there for years. And we can do
better in terms of keeping our people safe while making sure that we are
consistent with our values."
The Fiscal Year 2016 defense budget that arrived on Obama's desk earlier
this week attempted to ban all transfers of Guantanamo prisoners to the
United States, heighten the barrier to shift them overseas, and prohibit
moves to specific countries
He also cited concerns about the bill's use of a budgeting gimmick to
circumvent spending caps and its failure to adopt certain reforms, but Obama
was particularly explicit about rejecting Congress's attempt to keep the
U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba open.
"Because of the manner in which this bill would undermine our national
security," he wrote in his official veto message, "I must veto it."
Obama had dramatically ordered the notorious Bush-era offshore prison closed
on his first full day in office, in 2009. But by the end of that year it was
already clear that his moral scruples were giving way to political
calculation.
He proceeded to repeatedly give in to Republican Congressional opposition.
For instance, the White House had previously threatened to veto defense
authorization bills that contained provisions blocking the closure of the
prison in 2011, 2012 and 2014, but Obama had backed down each time.
This time, however, his veto gives critics hope that maybe he would renew
efforts to close the prison before he left office.
The Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents many of the men
detained at Guantanamo, called the veto "important" but said in a statement
that "lawmakers' attempts to keep Guantanamo open for partisan political
gain are no excuse for President Obama's failure to close the prison."
The Center warned that if he lacks the political will to "take bold steps
now, he will fail to close Guantanamo, and that will be a central part of
his legacy as president."
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