Senate Proceeding 05-19-09 on May 19th, 2009 :: 4:01:05 to 4:08:45
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4:01:01 to 4:01:22( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: amendment and others. i yield the floor. mr. mccain: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator fro from arizona. mr. would like to make a few remarks about what is perhaps the most contentious issue in this supplemental funding bill, and that is the issue that we've been discussing throughout the day, and that's how to hand the u.s. detention facility at

4:01:05 to 4:08:45( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: John McCain

4:01:23 to 4:01:44( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: guantanamo bay, cuba. the last few days have seen a flurry of amendments relating to the guantanamo issue. some republicans and others from democrats. indeed it seems that this iss has overshadowed the necessary focus on our ongoing wars in iraq and afghanistan and the way forward in each.

4:01:45 to 4:02:05( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: i'm afraid that this bipartisan expression of concern and surge of legislative activity has a single cause: a decision by president obama in one of his first acts after his inauguration to announce that he would close guantanamo bay one year after taking office without presenting a plan for the

4:02:06 to 4:02:28( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: disposition of t there. by announcing guantanamo's closure without first conducting an in-depth review of the very difficult issues posed by the guantanamo detainees at guantanamo, we are left today aring over the wisdom of

4:02:29 to 4:02:49( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: shuttering a prison in the absence of any plan for wha comes next. with the ainistration unable to -- the congress has been underunderstandably reluctant to fund the closure of guantanamo as the president requested in this supplemen

4:02:50 to 4:03:11( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: in fact, the democratic chairman of the appropriations committee in both the house and senate have now stripped funding for closing guantanamo from their respecti bills. the senate majority leader now says that his party will not proceed in the absence of a plan for guantanamo's closure.

4:03:12 to 4:03:33( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: it didn't have to be this way. during the past election, i, too, supported closing guantanamo and pledged to do so. i continue to believe that it is in the interests of the united states of america to close guantanamo. but all policy-makers must understand just how essential it is to gain the trust of the

4:03:34 to 4:03:55( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: american people on this sensitive national security issue. we cannot simply proceed without explaining to the american people what the plan is these prisoners will be handled in a way that is consistent with american values and protective of our national security.

4:03:56 to 4:04:16( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: the american people deserve a detailed explanation of what will take place the day after guantanamo is comploased and they must be certain that their governmentill execute its most fundamental duty, which iso keep america and its citizens safe. when the president announced his decision last friday to restart military commissions to try

4:04:17 to 4:04:39( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: guantanamo detainees for war crimes, i applauded tt decision. i've long believed that military commissi venue for trying alleged war crimes violations committed by guantanamo detainees. there is no doubt that the co massive scale o

4:04:40 to 4:05:00( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: attacks that left over 3,000 innocent peo war crimes. there's also no doubt that al qaeda and its supporters were then and continue to be today committed the destruction of our values and way values in a fashion that bears no resemance to the acts of

4:05:01 to 4:05:21( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: common criminals. but while i applauded the president for restarting military commissions, i also pointed out that the president's overall decision making o detainee policy has left more questions than it has provided answers. the numerous unresolved questions includes where the

4:05:22 to 4:05:42( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: guantanamo inmates will be held and tried, how we will handle those wh cannot be tried but are too dangerous to release, and how we will deal with the prisoners held at baghram air base in afghanistan, some of whom were captured off of the i would point out to my colleagues -- and most of them

4:05:43 to 4:06:05( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: know and many americans know -- that we have already had the experience of around 10% of those detainees who were released who returned to the battlefield two of them -- one of them is now a high-ranking al qaeda operative in southern afghanistan pakistan.

4:06:06 to 4:06:26( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: so this is a real threat. now, the lack of a comprehensive, well-thought-out plan led to a predictable political backlash to any movement on guantanamo. instead of unifying americans behind a plan that keeps us safe and honors administration's course of action has unified the

4:06:27 to 4:06:48( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: opposition to moving forward and move forward we must. national security issues of this dimensn require more than announcements and future promises. they require -- the full, detailed explanations of a proposed course in order to gain the support of the american people and their elected

4:06:49 to 4:07:09( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: leadership in congress. that is what wil be required for success in closing the prison at guantanamo bay. arguments during this debate that we should deny fund

4:07:10 to 4:07:30( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: close guantanamo until we see a plan on what to do with detainees. we should also deny asylum in the united states whether for trial, posttrial incarceration, long-term preventive detention or administrative detention pending deportation. we will do the best we can to deal with these issues with the information from thez administration that's available

4:07:31 to 4:07:51( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: to us. i look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the ais but, most importantly, i again say to the president that i will work with you to forge a bipartisan solution to this very difficult probl tt faces all of us.

4:07:52 to 4:08:12( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: i urge again that we address all the detainee policy issues in a comprehensive fashion and lay out a plan that will keep us safe and honor our values. i strongly believe that a comprehensive plan will lead to success while a piecemeal approach, without adressing the legitimate concerns of the --

4:08:13 to 4:08:33( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: addressing the legitimate concerns of the american public and divide us. madam president shall i yield the floor. mr. cochr the presiding officer: the senator fromsspi mr. cochran: madam president, i ask unanimous consent that lauren freehs and tom osterhouse who are detailees assigned to the comttees on

4:08:34 to 4:08:50( Edit History Discussion )

John McCain: appropriations, be granted floor priviles during consideration of the fy 2009 supplemental appropriations bill. the presiding officer: without