Boehner on First Club Gitmo Detainee Brought to US

Statement:

WASHINGTON, DC – House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement on reports that Guantanamo Bay terrorist prisoner Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani has been transferred into the United States:

“This is the first step in the Democrats’ plan to import terrorists into America. Without a plan to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, the Administration has made the decision to begin transferring these terrorists into the United States, in spite of the overwhelming opposition of the American people and serious questions from Members of Congress of both parties. There are more than 200 of the world’s most dangerous men held at the Guantanamo Bay prison. Does the Administration plan to transfer all of them into our nation in this way? Do they plan to give them the same legal rights as the American people? Just what is the Administration’s plan for closing this prison?

“House Republicans have introduced the Keep Terrorists Out of America Act to protect Americans from dangerous terrorists being imported into our communities. Specifically, this legislation would require the Administration to receive certification from state governors and legislatures before a terrorist is transferred into their states. Does New York’s governor support the Administration’s decision to transfer Ghailani into Manhattan? Does the state legislature? By more than a three-to-one margin, the American people do not, underscoring the urgency for the Administration to produce its plan for closing the Guantanamo Bay prison.”

NOTE: Ghailani has been indicted in the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in East Africa. A Gallup/USA Today poll released last week showed that by more than a three-to-one margin, Americans oppose moving terrorists from the Guantanamo Bay prison into their states.