What about Gitmo, yo?

Barack Obama promised to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility within one year of becoming President of the United States of America.  You know, that prison camp at the oldest overseas U. S. military base.  The closing would have to occur before the end of January, 2010 in order for the promise to be kept.  As we all know, things don't always go to plan.  But for the highest office in the world, shouldn't accountability be a primary job for the mass media?

                            

Then President-elect Obama's address to a joint session of congress, Feb 24th, 2009:

"To overcome extremism, we must also be vigilant in upholding the values our troops defend - because there is no force in the world more powerful than the example of America.  That is why I have ordered the closing of the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, and will seek swift and certain justice for captured terrorists - because living our values doesn't make us weaker, it makes us safer and it makes us stronger."



Wow, sounds like he's not playing around!

Here we sit over 19 months later and - by some form of mass media magic - it is one of the least-talked about subjects in regard to the administration's initial intentions.

I believe the President made this promise with little intention of following through.  If he did happen to have the pure intentions, then he made the promise with the mentality that the President will get whatever he wants, with no opposition to 'little things' like a suspected terrorist-detaining facility.  So why did he really make the promise?  Well, he needed votes.  Nothing like a 'human suffering injustice' to get the people in a political base all worked up and maybe nab a percentage point or two in each state during the election, huh?

The mass media covered the President's intended action toward the Guantanamo detention camp during and just after the election.  Then, like many subjects, it faded away until around January 20th, 2010 - the one-year, self-imposed deadline.  The mass media rightfully asked, "When?  Where?  How?"  President Obama made the suggestion of moving the camp to Thompson, Illinois.  He then ordered Attorney General Eric Holder and Defense Secretary Robert Gates to purchase a prison in the small Illinois town.  Does anyone remember what happened?  The Presidents own party, along with the other side, unanimously voted to prohibit the replacement of Gitmo (or any similar detention facility) on United States ground.

Then ... nothing.  I guess the mass media had a new missing white woman story to cover.

Oh, well, there are now more important things to focus on, aren't there, Mr President?  Sweep that one under the rug.  We'll just reissue that promise during the next presidential campaign.

                      

Sources:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/guantanamo-bay.htm

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/07/obama-guantanamo.html  (I suggest you read this one)

http://www.notable-quotes.com/o/obama_barack.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQXZoM__vU0