Page 5 - Down Guantanamo News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Suspect in the benghazi terror attack has finally been captured. picked up in libya, some 642 days after four americans were murdered there. including our ambassador. ahmed khatallah is now on his way to the united states for a potential trial in washington, d.c.. just like any common criminal weapon why? wisconsin senator ron johnson is a member of the foreign relations committee, and the homeland security committee, and so, senator, that's the question, why exactly are we bringing this terrorist, who was captured abroad, here on to american soil to try him in the criminal courts? >> well, me...

And there's language in the defense authorization bill this year, in the house bill, at least, to prevent any transfers from guantanamo. and i think it's just going to harden that position among members of congress because clearly this administration can't be trusted. >> it's interesting because some people have speculated that maybe the president was in favor of this kind of a deal, this prisoner swap, because ultimately he wants to release all of the prisoners from gitmo and shut it down. could it actually have the reverse effect now and embolden members like yourself, people in congress who...

And frankly whether or not the president could do the same sort of thing to empty guantanamo out. before this, it did not seem like the president had the power to everyone ty guantanamo. does what just happened here mean he has more power than we previously understood? exact lay year ago president obama renewed his call to shut down guantanamo. he then appointed two new envoys, one at the state department, one at the pentagon, to start the work or restart the work of trying to close guantanamo. he literally reopened the office of closing guantanamo that had been shut down during his first term...

Quite frankly, the president has wanted to shut down guantanamo. we are winding down the operation in afghanistan. we're going to keep that prison open indefinitely? some of those folks have to be going back to their own countries. they were taliban leader, not al qaeda leaders. >> one was a governor of a profits -- the taliban ran a monstrous regime and tried to kill americans and succeeded killing lots of americans but they were not al qaeda and were not plotting explosions in manhattan or flying planes into buildings. there is a distinction organizationally and i think even in terms of the ...

Don't, this war is very unpopular and there is support for the president's plan to draw down forces significantly and essentially end our presence there by the end of 2016. you know, you've got to find some ways to end elements of this conflict. the afghan security forces aren't going to be able to fight this on their own. we have to remember, ronan, that this fits into the broader context of the president wanting to shut down guantanamo. this is in part an effort -- >> you think this is a first step? >> well, i think it's a step that way and hopefully -- i think my hope in all of this is this...