Obama Has Just Made the Country a Lot Less Safe: Moving Gitmo Terrorists to Illinois
Thompson Correctional Facility
In one of his dumbest acts as President, Barack Obama will be taking some of the most hardened terror suspects being held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and transferring them to the currently abandoned Thomson Correctional Center in western Illinois.
As Amy Goodman describes it on Democracy Now!:
The Obama administration has confirmed plans for the eventual transfer of dozens of Guantanamo Bay prisoners to a prison in Illinois. On Tuesday, the White House said it would purchase the Thomson Correctional Center as part of its effort to close Guantanamo. Some prisoners will face trial by military commissions, while others will remain jailed without charge. In response, some critics have already dubbed the prison “Guantanamo North.
This is sheer madness. Why would such a move even be contemplated? The Guantanamo facility is ideal for the purpose of holding these individuals. It is on foreign soil. It is surrounded by shark-infested waters and is heavily patrolled by the U.S. Navy. Escape is impossible. In a (highly unlikely) terror attack on the facility, no innocent American civilians would be at risk of injury or death.
The Thompson facility, in contrast, offers none of those advantages. It is only 150 miles west of Chicago. It is a run-down facility that would have to be beefed up to “SuperMax” standards. Its perimeter fence is sub-standard and will have to be rebuilt. Major federal funds will be required for this. Very few local jobs would be created to benefit the local community. In addition it is completely exposed. A terror attack on the facility would be child’s play—you could drive right up to it. Escapes would be much easier, and terrorists managing to break out would have the entire continental United States to hide in. An ultra-light plane or helicopter could fly over and drop weapons and explosives to the jihadists inside.
One could go on and on.
And yet, the Obama administration thinks this move is a good idea and will be beneficial to the people in the area!
The people who live nearby, however, do not share those sentiments. A telephone poll conducted Tuesday night revealed that 68 percent of respondents have serious concerns about the move.
Surrounding residents are worried for their safety, and they should be. These hard-core detainees view themselves as soldiers of Islam, and in the past the groups they are affiliated with have not hesitated to attack detention centers in order to win the release of their fellow jihadis.
Don’t believe it?
Just three days ago (December 13, 2009) 70 heavily armed Islamic militant members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in the Philippines attacked the provincial jail in Isabela on Basilan Island, and freed 31 of their al-Qaeda linked jihadist comrades. The daring assault resulted in the death of at least one guard and injured dozens others.
The escapees included a Moro rebel commander, along with another terrorist who had been captured after beheading 10 Philippine marines in 2007.
Why would we want to risk having a similar incident in Illinois?
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