Biden Expects Obama To Shut Down Guantanamo Before He Leaves Office

President Barack Obama expects to close Guantanamo Bay prison before leaving office.

“We’re going to do our best to try and get this closed and it’s our expectation that that’s what we’ll do,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said at an August 25 news briefing of the United States Naval base prison in Cuba that is used to hold terrorism suspects, Reuters reports.

On the same day, Vice President Joe Biden said at a news conference in Sweden that it is his “hope and expectation” that Guantanamo Bay will be closed before Obama leaves office in January, according to The Huffington Post.

Obama has been trying to close the military prison since he took office in 2008, but opposition from Congress has prevented him from doing so.

In June, sources told Reuters that the Obama administration would not pursue the use of an executive action in order to close Guantanamo Bay. The decision was made after officials concluded it would not be a viable strategy.

Without an executive action, Obama will need to convince Congress to overturn the country’s ban on bringing the dozens of prisoners at the Cuba-based military prison to maximum-security prisons in the United States.

As for overriding the ban, White House lawyers and other officials had not at that time developed a strong legal position or effective political sales pitch in an election year to make it a viable option, a source said.

Sources: Reuters (2), The Huffington Post / Photo Credit: West Point-The U.S. Military Academy/Flickr