Bush on Guantanamo: Not wrong, just bad PR
reuters: President George W. Bush acknowledged on Wednesday that the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where three detainees committed suicide, has damaged the U.S. image abroad and said it should be shut down.
But he said a plan for relocating the prisoners was needed first and he also was awaiting a Supreme Court decision about the forum for handling detainee cases.
"I'd like to close Guantanamo, but I also recognize that we're holding some people there that are darn dangerous and that we better have a plan to deal with them in our courts," Bush told a news conference in the White House Rose Garden.
The number of detainees may be reduced by nearly a fifth, according to an Afghan official who said there are plans to extradite all 96 Afghans, including several senior Taliban officials.
The U.S. military declined to confirm or deny the information, citing security concerns about discussing any movements of prisoners before they take place.
Bush said Guantanamo is seen by some countries as an example of the United States not living up to the principles it espouses on human rights.
"No question, Guantanamo sends, you know, a signal to some of our friends -- provides an excuse, for example, to say, 'The United States is not upholding the values that they're trying encourage other countries to adhere to,"' Bush said. Read more
db: Why so image conscious of late? Could it be the need for international support with his mission to 'get'Iran? His need for international $$$ to rebuild Iraq? Whatever the reason you can bet it has little to do with morality or a new found respect for international law. And as for Bush's comment re dealing with the 'darn dangerous' in US courts - don't hold your breath - the PR outcome would be even worse. Imagine all that 'grandstanding' the 'darn dangerous' folk would indulge in - all those tales of abuse, torture and murder - maybe some allegations of CIA collusion with AQ. US trials - in the normal sense of the word - could never happen.
But he said a plan for relocating the prisoners was needed first and he also was awaiting a Supreme Court decision about the forum for handling detainee cases.
"I'd like to close Guantanamo, but I also recognize that we're holding some people there that are darn dangerous and that we better have a plan to deal with them in our courts," Bush told a news conference in the White House Rose Garden.
The number of detainees may be reduced by nearly a fifth, according to an Afghan official who said there are plans to extradite all 96 Afghans, including several senior Taliban officials.
The U.S. military declined to confirm or deny the information, citing security concerns about discussing any movements of prisoners before they take place.
Bush said Guantanamo is seen by some countries as an example of the United States not living up to the principles it espouses on human rights.
"No question, Guantanamo sends, you know, a signal to some of our friends -- provides an excuse, for example, to say, 'The United States is not upholding the values that they're trying encourage other countries to adhere to,"' Bush said. Read more
db: Why so image conscious of late? Could it be the need for international support with his mission to 'get'Iran? His need for international $$$ to rebuild Iraq? Whatever the reason you can bet it has little to do with morality or a new found respect for international law. And as for Bush's comment re dealing with the 'darn dangerous' in US courts - don't hold your breath - the PR outcome would be even worse. Imagine all that 'grandstanding' the 'darn dangerous' folk would indulge in - all those tales of abuse, torture and murder - maybe some allegations of CIA collusion with AQ. US trials - in the normal sense of the word - could never happen.
posted by exoplanet at 9:39 PM
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