Guantanamo

Floor Speech

Guantanamo

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, last night we learned that the supplemental war spending bill the Senate will take up contains $80 million to be used for closing Guantanamo. But the language of the bill acknowledges what Republicans have been saying for months: The administration has no plan to safely close this secure detention facility.

Closing Guantanamo without a safe alternative would be irresponsible,
dangerous, and unacceptable to the American people. Americans are worried that closing Guantanamo by an arbitrary deadline won't keep them as safe as Guantanamo has. They are particularly worried about the administration's reported plan to transfer some detainees to detention facilities right here on American soil. State and local officials in places such as Louisiana, California, Virginia, and Missouri have been introducing resolutions to keep terrorists from coming to their communities.

One look at the experience that Alexandria, right across the river here, had a few years ago during the trial of 9/11 conspirator Zacharias Moussaoui makes it easier to see why all these communities are so concerned. Moussaoui was just one terrorist. Yet the effect his presence had on the city of Alexandria was enough for the city's current mayor to state emphatically that he is absolutely opposed to relocating prisoners from Guantanamo to Alexandria. ``We had this experience,'' he said recently. ``Let someone else have it.''

According to press accounts, housing Moussaoui turned parts of Alexandria into a virtual encampment. Every time he was moved to the courthouse, he was transferred in a heavily armed convoy that shut down traffic and locked down the surrounding community.

One security expert recently told the Washington Post that housing detainees from Guantanamo would likely be even more complicated than it was for Moussaoui, with more locations for security personnel to cover and even more snipers.

According to the same Post article, one of Moussaoui's lawyers said that bringing just two or three Guantanamo detainees to Alexandria would be a ``major headache.'' Alexandria's sheriff has warned that multiple detainees could ``overwhelm the system.''

Based on the Moussaoui experience, local business owners in Alexandria also think the arrival of detainees from Guantanamo could be a serious drag on commerce. But even more worrisome for residents is the concern that housing detainees in Alexandria could invite terrorist attacks.

I ask unanimous consent to have the Washington Post article I am referring to entitled ``Security Worries in the Suburbs, Possible Move of Terrorist Suspects to Alexandria for Trial Raises Outcry'' printed in the Record.

There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record

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Mr. McCONNELL. The problems that one terrorist caused for Alexandria could be duplicated in any city or town to which detainees from Guantanamo
are sent. Although the administration hasn't given us any details on which cities or towns they might choose, we can imagine what they could look forward to, based on Alexandria's experience with Moussaoui. So here is what a community would have to experience: heavily armed agents patrolling local neighborhoods, rooftop snipers, streets locked down and access to local businesses cut off, identification checks and bomb-smelling dogs checking cars, millions of dollars in cost and strained local resources. That is what you get when you have a terrorist in your hometown. Kentuckians don't want to live under these conditions. I doubt any other American would either, especially if we consider that any community that becomes a home to these detainees could have to endure these conditions for literally years, given the possible length of terror trials.

Some of the other locations that have been mentioned as possible destinations for the terrorists at Guantanamo include facilities in South Carolina and Kansas. One local official in South Carolina responded to the possibility by saying he didn't have the police resources to deal with an influx of terrorists from Guantanamo. An official in Kansas said Guantanamo detainees would significantly tax his police resources.

The administration claims that closing Guantanamo and transferring some detainees to U.S. soil would make the American people safer. It is hard to understand that statement. But based on the experience of Alexandria, it is easy to see why many Americans are skeptical. The administration has said that when it comes to Guantanamo, its highest priority is the safety of the American people. But safety is our top concern. The administration should rethink its plan to transfer terrorists to American communities.

I yield the floor.

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