Wire: House Moves to Allow Detainees Into US

Off the Wire:

WASHINGTON, June 17, 2009 -- Newswire services this morning reported that House defense authorizers have adopted legislation that would allow President Obama to transfer military detainees from Guantanamo Bay into the United States once the White House has a full risk-mitigation plan.

The provision included in the House Armed Services Committee’s version of the 2010 defense authorization bill -- which sets policy for the Pentagon -- is a change from language Republicans on the panel sought to include.

Republicans sought to prohibit the transfer or release of military prisoners in the United States and require state legislatures and governors to approve the transfer of any detainee into their states.

Instead, the panel approved an amendment offered by Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), the panel’s chairman. Skelton’s amendment requires the president to present a plan "on what danger the detainees pose to the United States, its territories, and possessions, how the President plans to mitigate this risk and what will happen to individual detainees."

The House Armed Services Committee approved the 2010 defense authorization bill in the early hours of Wednesday after a marathon mark up session. The bill was approved 61-0.

(Report from newswire sources.)

Tags: Open Thread, Wire, Headlines, DOD, Military, War, United States, U.S., News
Global Tags: Washington DC, News and Politics, News, Politics, Current Events, Current Affairs, Life, Culture, Buzz, Tension