Trent's Blog
Rep. Trent Franks looks to keep Guantanamo prisoners out of Arizona
Posted By: Bethany Haley on February 20, 2009
By Mike Sunnucks
Phoenix Business Journal
U.S. Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., introduced a bill Tuesday to prohibit prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention facility from being transferred to federal prisons or military bases in Arizona.
President Barack Obama has ordered the U.S. Naval detention facilities be closed and his administration now must decide what to do with the 250 suspected terrorists held there.
The Franks proposal mirrors a number of Republicans bills in Congress that looks to keep Guantanamo detainees out of states, including California, South Carolina, Georgia, Oklahoma, Kansas and North Carolina.
“The legislation I introduced today would prohibit the use of federal funds for relocating Gitmo detainees to the state of Arizona,” Franks said in a statement. “Out of 70,000 Taliban and Al Qaeda fighters that have been captured on the battlefield, one-tenth of 1 percent, less than 800, were actually deemed such a significant threat, or possessing such highly valued intelligence, that they had to be detained to prevent them from causing or facilitating further harm to innocent civilians as well as our troops in the field. Out of these 800, only approximately 250 detainees remain incarcerated at Guantanamo.”
Franks represents Glendale, Peoria, Sun City and Kingman and supports continuing Guantanamo’s operation and opposes a shift of prisoners into the criminal justice system.
Obama’s executive order to close Guantanamo is the latest chapter in legal and political battles over how to house suspected terrorists and who has legal jurisdiction over enemy combatants in a war that has not been officially declared.
Human rights groups have pressed for Guantanamo to close, criticizing Bush administration policies and use of military tribunals to try suspected Islamic terrorists.
“This is clearly an important step in the right direction. Speed and specifics are now of the essence – the trial or release of these 240-plus detainee cases is already years overdue,” said Irene Khan, secretary general of Amnesty International.
Arizona is home to federal prisons and military bases, including Luke Air Force Base in Glendale and Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, which is home to military intelligence training and operations.
Franks moves to keep Gitmo prisoners out of Arizona
Posted By: Bethany Haley on February 12, 2009
By Kevin Tripp
KTAR
Arizona Congressman Trent Franks has introduced legislation aimed at making sure no terrorist suspects from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, end up in Arizona.
President Barack Obama has said that Guantanamo Bay will be closed within a year. There have been reports that detainees held there, who are not returned to their home countries, will be transferred to federal prison facilities or military facilities in the United States.
Franks said Thursday that his bill would declare that, "No public dollars could be spent to bring Guantanamo Bay prisoners to Arizona or to house them in Arizona."
Franks, a Republican, said terrorist suspects should not have access to the U.S. legal sysem and the possibility of being freed.
"That's our system, the way it works," he said. "Sometimes we let the bad guys go free. The problem is we let one of these bad guys go free and they could do some terrible harm."
Other members of Congress have introduced bills to keep Gitmo prisoners out of six other states.
