Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 - Continued
Floor Speech
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to take a close look at Senator MITCH MCCONNELL's amendment, which is next up to be considered. Particularly, I ask you to turn to page 3 of this amendment. You will find in the first paragraph on page 3 a troubling requirement which Senator McConnell will make of this administration.
What Senator McConnell is asking is that 60 days from the passage of this bill and every 90 days thereafter, the President of the United States provide to Members of the Senate and the House: a current summary of the evidence, intelligence, and information used to justify the detention of each detainee listed under paragraph (1) at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay.
It is not enough for Senator McConnell to ask for the identity of these people, the countries they are from, the likelihood they will be transferred to some other place, the likelihood they might be engaged in terrorism, he is asking for the President to disclose the work product of the prosecutors who are holding these detainees and determining whether a criminal case can be brought against them.
For what earthly purpose? Why would we possibly want to jeopardize the prosecution of someone who may be guilty of terrorism or a crime threatening the United States? To satisfy our curiosity? I think it is a mistake.
I will tell my colleagues, if it is sent to us even in classified form, it might be leaked. In addition, if a trial should follow, one of the first discovery motions from any defendant is this information: Judge, if the President can share this information with 535 Members of Congress, the defendant should be able to see the information as well. Why would we possibly want to jeopardize a prosecution to satisfy the curiosity of the Senator from Kentucky, or any Senator for that matter?
This paragraph should have been stricken. The rest of it you may find good or bad, but this is a dangerous paragraph.
I reserve the remainder of my time.
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Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, how much time remains?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has 2 1/2 minutes.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I won't dwell on the double standard. I won't dwell on the fact that when President Bush suggested Guantanamo be closed, I don't recall a single Republican Senator--certainly not Senator McConnell or those who have spoken recently--objecting. I won't dwell on the fact that when there were releases of hundreds of detainees from Guantanamo, there was no requirement of an accounting by the Republican side of the aisle about these people and where they were headed. I certainly won't argue the double standard that this President has stepped forward and said he will come forward with a plan in detail of how to do this in a responsible way.
Does anyone in this Chamber seriously believe President Obama would release a terrorist into their community, into their neighborhood? Can you really say that with a straight face? I don't think you can. The American people know better. This President is responsible. Like every President, he wants to protect us, and to suggest otherwise is not responsible.
The Senator from Kentucky has discussed many things today. He has failed to note that we currently have in U.S. prisons 347 inmates being held for terrorism. Currently, in your Federal prison in your State in your backyard, in your neighborhood, according to the Senator from Kentucky, 347 convicted terrorists are in our prisons today--not at Guantanamo, in our prisons.
I will get back to the bottom line. Why in the world would we jeopardize the prosecution of any detainee at Guantanamo with the requirement of the McConnell amendment that the President disclose evidence, intelligence, and information to justify the detention of the detainee? It is far better for us not to request that information and successfully prosecute that person than to satisfy the curiosity of the Senator from Kentucky.
I yield the floor.
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