Blog

GITMO

Washington, D.C., July 9, 2019

Should captured terrorists be held on U.S. soil?

Every year, funding for the U.S. Department of Defense is authorized through legislation called the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The Senate has already passed their version of the NDAA for the upcoming fiscal year. And in the House, we're currently working through our version of this legislation. It's a long process, but very important.

There are some elements of the House version that I strongly support. For example, our troops would receive a 3.1% pay raise, which is certainly deserved. There are many other elements, however, that are very concerning.

One of these has to do with our military detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (Gitmo). As currently written, the House version of this bill would prevent any newly captured terrorists from being brought to Gitmo. Additionally, it would strike down the current prohibition on Gitmo detainees being transferred to the United States. (If you remember from a few years back, South Carolina was one of the locations being considered to house terrorists transferred from Gitmo.)

*** Terrorists who seek to destroy this nation should NOT be entitled to the same judicial rights & protections afforded to those on our soil. ***

It’s important we keep them out of the United States, and for that reason, I've introduced amendments to this bill that would continue to block the transfer of Gitmo detainees into our country.