SC Brig considered for terror suspects

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BradB08 said:
Gitmo should be closed and so should the brig in SC.

I firmly believe that we are going in the wrong direction with this "war on terrorism" and eventually, it's going to spill over to where ordinary Americans are going to be the ones imprisoned on brigs or in FEMA camps.
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Some clarification: The brig in SC was built by the military many years before 9/11, for the jailing of military prisoners. "Brig" is what the Navy and Marine Corps call their military jails. Only after 9/11, was a special wing set aside in the SC brig for terrorist suspects such as Jose Padilla. Even if they don't send foreign terror suspects to the brig, it won't be closing because it still has to carry out its primary mission.
 
Update:

Obama to wait on Gitmo closure
Economy stalls other promises
Christina Bellantoni (Contact)
Monday, January 12, 2009

President-elect Barack Obama said Sunday that some of his campaign promises will have to wait - domestic-policy changes may be on hold because of the dire economic situation, and legal and national security concerns have postponed his promised closure of Guantanamo Bay.

In an interview with ABC's "This Week" that aired Sunday, Mr. Obama said he has come to realize that his pledge to close the federal detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, within his first 100 days in office won't happen that soon.

When he was campaigning for the presidency, Mr. Obama regularly said the prison "sends a negative message to the world" and taints even trade-deal negotiations.

"To the extent that we are not being true to our values and our ideals, that sends a negative message to the world, and it gives us less leverage then when we want to deal with countries that are abusing human rights," he said during a primary-season debate in Iowa in December 2007.

Guantanamo faded as an issue during the general election campaign because the Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, also wanted to close the facility.

But after Mr. Obama won the presidency, his transition co-chairman, John Podesta, said Nov. 11 that closing Guantanamo was "under review" and nothing definitive could be said because the situation is "complicated."

On Sunday, Mr. Obama said that closing Guantanamo Bay was a challenge.

"We are going to get it done, but part of the challenge that you have is that you have got a bunch of folks that have been detained, many of whom may be very dangerous, who have not been put on trial or have not gone through some adjudication," he said.

He said his legal and national security teams strive to balance creating a fair legal process that "doesn't result in releasing people who are intent on blowing us up."

"I don't want to be ambiguous about this," Mr. Obama said Sunday. "We are going to close Guantanamo, and we are going to make sure that the procedures we set up are ones that abide by our Constitution. That is not only the right thing to do but it actually has to be part of our broader national security strategy, because we will send a message to the world that we are serious about our values."
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Washington Times - Obama to wait on Gitmo closure
 
Graham, Brown say Navy brig would not be appropriate site detainees
By Yvonne Wenger
The Post and Courier
Monday, January 19, 2009

U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and U.S. Rep. Henry Brown agree that detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, don't belong at the Navy brig in Hanahan, and the two men are working to prevent the terror suspects from coming here.

President-elect Barack Obama reportedly could take action on inauguration day or soon after he takes office to close the operation and order the transfer of the roughly 250 detainees.

The brig, Ft. Leavenworth in Kansas, and Camp Pendleton in San Diego are three U.S. military sites mentioned as possible destinations for the detainees, although no official considerations have been announced.

Graham and Brown, both South Carolina Republicans, have vocally opposed the transfer of detainees to Hanahan on the grounds that it is not an appropriate site. The brig currently serves as a medium-security, rehabilitative prison for U.S. military inmates.

"This week's news reports that 61 ex-Guantanamo inmates have returned to terrorist activities only bolsters the need to keep them away from the residents, strategic military and transportation assets," Brown said in a statement.

His 1st Congressional District includes the brig. Surrounding the facility are the Naval Weapons Station and the Port of Charleston.

"Moving terrorists to such a militarily sensitive and unprepared area would be to the detriment of the city of Charleston and surrounding communities," Brown said.

Brown re-introduced legislation he first filed in the last Congress to block the transfer of the detainees to Charleston.

Likewise, Graham, a colonel in the Judge Advocate General's office of the Air Force Reserves, said it makes no sense to hold the "enemy combatants" in an urban area like Charleston, making it an automatic terrorist target.

"I do not have a problem with closing Guantanamo," Graham said in a statement. "But I do know that it will require serious planning and preparation before it can happen and the prison can be emptied of detainees in a manner that protects our national security.

"Some people want to treat enemy combatants like common criminals who robbed a liquor store. They're not. They are warriors committed to their cause, which is the destruction of our nation."

U.S. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said he has not taken any steps to fight the brig becoming home for the detainees because he believes the hype is speculation driven by the media.

Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat and the third-highest ranking member in Congress, said no Charleston officials have sought his intervention, nor has the Obama administration raised the matter to him.

But Clyburn said he understands that negotiations over placement of the detainees are underway with other countries.

Unemployment and economic strife are the problems he has been asked to address, Clyburn said.

The brig was first used as a holding site for suspected terrorists in 2002 when authorities announced that Jose Padilla, who was accused of being part of a "dirty bomb" plot, had been moved there. Since then, two other detainees have been held there.

Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., could not be reached for comment.
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Graham, Brown say Navy brig would not be appropriate site detainees
 
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