Powell calls for closing GitmoHuckabee says keep Gitmo open

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell (R) said he favors immediately closing the Guantanamo Bay military prison and moving its detainees to U.S. facilities. The prison, which now holds about 380 suspected terrorists, has tarnished the world’s perception of the United States, Powell said. "If it was up to me, I would close Guantanamo. Not tomorrow, but this afternoon. I’d close it," he said. . . .

Republican presidential candidate former Governor Mike Huckabee (R) said he believes the prison should remain open. "It’s more symbolic than it is a substantive issue, because people perceive of mistreatment when, in fact, there are extraordinary means being taken to make sure these detainees are being given, really, every consideration," said Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor. "But I’ll tell you, if we let somebody out and it turns out that they come and fly an airliner into one of our skyscrapers, we’re going to be asking, how come we didn’t stop them? We had them detained," Huckabee said. "I can tell you, most of our prisoners would love to be in a facility more like Guantanamo and less like the state prisons that people are in the United States," he said . . . [Read More]

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Tags: Colin Powell, Gitmo, Guantanamo Bay, Mike Huckabee, military prison