Peter Visclosky: “The amendment that I have offered deals with the detainees at Guantanamo Bay. I would suggest to my colleagues that the…”

“The amendment that I have offered deals with the detainees at Guantanamo Bay. I would suggest to my colleagues that the continued operation of the facility at Guantanamo Bay reduces our Nation's credibility and weakens our national security by providing terrorist organizations with recruitment material. I do regret that the bill and other relevant appropriations acts continue this or any attempts to close Guantanamo by prohibiting viable alternatives. Also, as we are debating an appropriation bill, and this committee has to pay for things, I think it is appropriate to discuss the cost of the detention facility at Guantanamo. We are now spending approximately $2.7 million annually per inmate, which is about 35 times the cost per inmate in a supermaximum Federal prison in the United States. The United States Government has transferred approximately 620 detainees from Guantanamo since May of 2002, with 532 transfers occurring during President Bush's administration and slightly in excess of 88 transfers occurring during the current administration. Nearly 500 defendants charged with crimes related to international terrorism have been--and I would emphasize this to my colleagues-- successfully convicted in the United States since 2001. It includes one former GTMO detainee who was tried in New York City, the Times Square bomber; Richard Reid, the shoe bomber; and others.…”