The following editorial, adapted from The Washington Post, discusses the ongoing struggles to close the Guantánamo Bay detention facility as President Joe Biden’s term comes to a close. Despite efforts to reduce the detainee population, the facility remains a symbol of America’s controversial post-9/11 policies. The piece highlights the political and legislative obstacles that have hindered previous presidents, including Biden, from fully addressing the facility’s moral and legal issues, while also emphasizing the need for a comprehensive resolution. –Editors
As President Joe Biden prepares to leave office, he will do so as the third U.S. president to attempt — and ultimately fail — to close the Guantánamo Bay detention facility. Despite his efforts, this enduring symbol of one of the most regrettable chapters in American history will persist, likely into the next administration and beyond.
Guantánamo was opened by President George W. Bush during the height of the “War on Terror,” and its grim legacy has only deepened over the years. Initially housing 780 detainees, the prison became a global symbol of U.S. excesses in the fight against terrorism, including torture and indefinite detention without trial. As its international reputation soured, Bush sought to close it, reducing the detainee population to 242. Barack Obama, who campaigned on a promise to close Guantánamo, was thwarted by Congress and only managed to reduce the population to 40. Donald Trump, in contrast, vowed to keep the prison open and even fill it with “some bad dudes,” though he did not add any new prisoners.
Biden, to his credit, has reduced the prison population to a mere 15. This significant drop followed the largest-ever transfer of detainees in December and January, with several men sent to countries such as Oman, Malaysia, and Kenya. Yet, these transfers have not been enough to address the facility’s continuing moral and legal issues.
The remaining detainees come from a diverse range of countries, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and Pakistan. However, Biden’s administration encountered a significant setback in August when Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin blocked a plea deal for three men accused of masterminding the September 11 attacks. The men had agreed to plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence instead of the death penalty. Austin’s intervention, which came just months before the presidential election, appears politically motivated, as it would have undoubtedly drawn the ire of 9/11 victims’ families. Austin’s decision was later overturned by a military judge, but the deal remains stalled.
While Biden could have pushed harder in his early term to close Guantánamo, the more significant problem lies in Congress. The restrictive legislation passed under the Bush and Obama administrations severely limited the ability to transfer detainees, prohibiting their relocation to U.S. soil or to other countries unless specific conditions were met. These laws, based on unfounded security concerns, have effectively hamstrung efforts to close the prison.
Even with only 15 detainees left, the cost of maintaining Guantánamo remains astronomical — an estimated $500 million annually, or $33 million per prisoner. This financial absurdity highlights the inefficiency of keeping a facility open when there are more than enough secure federal prisons capable of housing and managing convicted terrorists.
For 23 years, Guantánamo has been a dark stain on America’s commitment to justice, human rights, and democracy. It has undermined the nation’s moral authority, making it difficult to condemn arbitrary detention and torture in other countries. Presidents since Bush have failed to correct this wrong, and it is past time for the U.S. to acknowledge the failure of Guantánamo and close the facility once and for all.
President-elect Donald Trump has expressed no desire to close the prison and, in fact, signed an executive order in 2018 to keep it open. Yet, even he has acknowledged that the cost of maintaining Guantánamo is “crazy.” If Trump is serious about improving government efficiency, he should work with lawmakers to transfer the remaining detainees to secure federal prisons and finally end the shameful legacy of Guantánamo Bay.
