Obama Presents Plan to Congress to Close Gitmo

President Obama on Tuesday released his long-awaited plan to shut down the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and transfer the remaining detainees to a facility in the United States, NBC News reported.

In announcing the plan, Obama said “it has been clear that the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay does not advance our national security—it undermines it." He said the prison is counterproductive to the fight against terrorists because they use it as a recruiting tool.

The plan is the administration's last-ditch effort to make good on Obama's campaign vow to close Guantanamo and calls for up to $475 million in construction costs, according to The Associated Press. The cost would in part cover the transfer of some of the remaining 91 detainees to facilities in the U.S., but Obama said the plan would ultimately save money. 

The president said some 30 detainees will be transferred to other countries and he hopes to work with Congress to find "a secure location in the U.S" to transfer nearly 60 detainees. 

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday it would be “illegal” for Obama to “transfer any of these terrorists into the United States.”

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