Washington D.C. – House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member, Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09), sent President Obama a letter declaring his support for closing the detention facility located at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and calling for a number of specific actions, including:

 

  • The appointment of a senior official, either to White House staff or to a senior position within the Department of State, charged with leading the renewed efforts to transfer those detainees held at GITMO who have been cleared for transfer by the Guantanamo Detainee Review Task Force

 

  • Expediting the transfer of detainees whose transfer from GITMO will not hurt the security of the United States by requesting that Secretary of Defense Hagel study the feasibility of using the national security waiver to transfer low-risk detainees, implement a limited waiver of ban on transfers to Yemen and prosecute all the detainees who can be tried in U.S. federal courts or in Military Commissions

 

  • Expediting the implementation of the Periodic Review Board process that has been mandated at by Congress.

 

Full text of the letter (LINK):

 

The Honorable Barack Obama

President of the United States

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, D.C. 20500

 

Dear Mr. President,

 

I strongly support closing the detention facility located at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (GITMO) as soon as possible. Until that facility is closed, it will continue to symbolize an unjust attempt to avoid the rule of law and to undermine the United States’ moral standing in defending its values and protecting human rights. GITMO undermines our national security because al-Qaeda continues to evoke it when rallying violent extremists to its cause. Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen, and former U.S. Central Commander General David Petraeus all advocated closing GITMO. The reasons that they cited, as senior civilian and military leaders, remain valid.

I write to add my strong support to your efforts to re-engage with Congress on this issue. I will do everything I can to aid those efforts. 

I ask you to appoint a senior official, either to your White House staff or to a senior position within the Department of State, charged with leading the renewed efforts to transfer those detainees held at GITMO who have been cleared for transfer by the Guantanamo Detainee Review Task Force. The appointment of a senior leader to negotiate and effectuate international detainee transfers is fundamental to a renewed effort to close GITMO.

I also ask you to make several efforts to expedite the transfer of detainees whose transfer from GITMO will not hurt the security of the United States.  First, request Secretary of Defense Hagel to study the feasibility of using the national security waiver to transfer low-risk detainees. Second, implement a limited waiver of your ban on transfers to Yemen. Third, prosecute all the detainees who can be tried in U.S. federal courts or in Military Commissions, now. Prosecute these cases at GITMO or ask Congress for a waiver to try them in the United States.

Finally, I also request that you expedite the implementation of the Periodic Review Board process that has been mandated at by Congress.

While these tasks will not be easy, they are the right things to do. As another military leader, former Marine Commandant, General James L. Jones, asserted while he was your National Security Advisor, GITMO can be closed in a safe and secure manner “that promotes our national security and helps our troops in the war against al-Qaeda.”

Once again, Mr. President, I thank you for your renewed commitment to close GTMO. I agree with General Jones that closing GITMO enhances our national security. I look forward to working with you in this important effort.

Sincerely,

Adam Smith

Ranking Member