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| Michigan May Get Guantanamo Inmates |
| By detnews.com |
| Published: 08/03/2009 |
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Michigan may get Guantanamo inmates Feds consider housing terror suspects at Standish prison - State politicians divided on plan David Shepardson and Mark Hicks - The Detroit News Washington -- The Obama administration is considering a maximum-security state prison set to close in northeast Michigan as a possible site to house suspected terrorists, Sen. Carl Levin said Sunday. The Standish Maximum Correctional Facility, which has enough room for 600 prisoners and provides the community with roughly 300 jobs, could be one of the locations for a heavily guarded site to hold the 229 suspected al-Qaida, Taliban and foreign fighters now jailed at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba. Levin, D-Detroit, is "aware that Standish is under consideration," said his press secretary, Tara Andringa. Levin is willing to support the housing of detainees at Standish, contingent on strong local support, she said. But Rep. Pete Hoekstra, the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee who is seeking the GOP nomination for governor next year, opposes the idea. The White House said Sunday no decisions have been made. If the proposed hybrid prison -- a courtroom-within-a-prison complex -- heads to Standish, it could create a boon for a state struggling with a 15.2 percent unemployment rate, the highest in the United States, and an area heavily dependent on corrections for its economy. The Standish facility, set to close this fall, is by far the largest employer in the city of 1,580 -- accounting for nearly half of its the tax base. Already facing a $45,000 budget gap, Standish will lose $36,000 a month in direct taxes if the prison closes. Liz Boyd, a spokeswoman for Gov. Jennifer Granholm, said the governor had no immediate response to reports about the prison complex plan. The Standish site is among three prisons and five prison camps to be shuttered by the state to save $120 million and help erase an expected $1.7 billion budget deficit in the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. For months, government lawyers and senior officials at the Pentagon, Justice Department and the White House have struggled with how to close the controversial U.S. Navy prison at Guantanamo. President Barack Obama has ordered it closed by Jan. 22. Congress has blocked $80 million intended to bring the detainees to the United States. Lawmakers want the administration to say how it plans to make the moves without putting Americans at risk. The facility would be jointly operated by the Justice Department, the military and the Department of Homeland Security. The military penitentiary at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., is also a possible location. Getting the Standish prison ready for the detainees would be costly. One official estimated it would cost more than $100 million for security and other upgrades. The idea, nonetheless, has drawn support from several Michigan lawmakers, including Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Menominee, whose 1st Congressional District includes Standish. But Hoekstra, R-Holland, told The Detroit News on Sunday residents need "total transparency" on the detainees' background and conduct, and he questioned whether a Michigan prison is properly designed to house dangerous accused terrorists. "We're not going to build Michigan's future on the backs of 100 or 200 Gitmo detainees," Hoekstra said, adding that accepting detainees "would not be a badge of honor for Michigan." Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, said despite the state's economic turmoil, Guantanamo detainees are not the answer. "Bringing terrorists into the state totally disregards the safety and security of Michigan families," he said Sunday. The prison proposal follows an idea Stupak first posed. Stupak, who could not be reached for comment Sunday, proposed in May moving detainees to the Upper Peninsula. Ex-Gov. John Engler last month endorsed that proposal and said it could bring Michigan upward of $1 billion a year. Read More. |
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