“The detention facilities at Guantánamo for individuals covered by this order shall be closed as soon as practicable, and no later than 1 year from the date of this order,” read a statement Obama signed on Jan. 22, 2009.
Aside from an executive order, the option for closing Guantanamo rests on convincing Congress to allow the remaining prisoners to be moved to maximum-security prisons in the United States, an action that is currently banned and heavily resisted by Republican lawmakers.
“It was just deemed too difficult to get through all of the hurdles that they would need to get through, and the level of support they were likely to receive on it was thought to be too low to generate such controversy, particularly at a sensitive (time) in an election cycle,” the source told Reuters.
Earlier this month, the President warned that he would veto the new defense spending bill over a provision that would prevent the transfer of Guantanamo prisoners to the continental United States.
"The Administration strongly objects to several provisions of the bill that relate to the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba," reads the statement. "As the Administration has said many times before, the continued operation of the facility weakens our national security by draining resources, damaging our relationships with key allies and partners, and emboldening violent extremists.”
"…The bill fails to eliminate the unwarranted limitations on the transfer of detainees…and introduces additional problematic restrictions that would impede closure of the facility."
