DOD lawyer hedges on closing Gitmo by January

Google News -- AP ^ | September 11, 2009 | Lara Jakes

[La Lydia]

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon's top lawyer on Thursday said the Obama administration remains committed to closing the Guantanamo Bay prison by early next year but stopped short of assuring it will happen. Pentagon general counsel Jeh Johnson's comments came as Congress weighs how to revamp a military court system — a key part of President Barack Obama's pledge to close Guantanamo by Jan. 22.

A number of legal questions remain on how to prosecute and detain the 226 suspected al-Qaida, Taliban and foreign fighters currently held at the U.S. military prison in Cuba. That has cast doubt on whether the Obama administration can resolve the questions in just over four months, and prompted top Republicans in Congress to demand that the prison stay open for now.

Johnson told a national security panel of American Bar Association lawyers that there are many issues involved in closing Guantanamo Bay and transferring detainees elsewhere...

Underscoring those challenges, Johnson also said he hoped that legislation to overhaul the Bush-era military commissions court system would be completed by the end of this month...

Speaking on the eve of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Johnson described the administration's struggle to follow legal and moral guidelines when dealing with terror detainees while protecting America from al-Qaida. Ultimately, he said, the government must ensure that U.S. laws follow what he called American values that do not allow cruel or degrading treatment of detainees — and that military troops and interrogators alike clearly understand those rules...

[La Lydia]

I do not feel safe with these bozos in charge. To them, the comfort and well being of terrorists is more important than the security of the American people.