President Barack Obama’s hopes of closing the Guantanamo Bay prison for terror suspects is slipping further away. The defense authorization bill approved 59-0 by the House Armed Services Committee late Wednesday night contains language barring funding to build or convert any facility in the U.S. to accept former Guantanamo detainees.
Such a provision could scuttle Obama’s plan to close Guantanamo by purchasing a state prison in Thomson, Ill., to house some of those now at Gitmo. The administration had sought $350 million in Department of Defense funding for Guantanamo-related closure and transfer expenses and an additional $237 million in Department of Justice funding for the Thomson site, including paying the state for the jail.
Full story: House panel votes to block Obama Gitmo plan – Josh Gerstein – POLITICO.com