Hoekstra Makes Case against ´Gitmo North´ at Standish Town Hall
Congressional Desk
September 13, 2009
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, spoke at a town hall meeting in Standish, Mich., where he made the point that the future of Michigan lies in creating jobs in tourism, advanced research and new technology, not "Gitmo Jobs."
"As a former business marketing executive for a Fortune 500 company, experience tells me that making Michigan home to the world´s most dangerous terrorists will not make it more attractive for tourists, families or potential job providers," said Hoekstra. "We need state leaders to pursue jobs for the future, the kind of jobs that attract new families and new business investment — in advanced technologies and automotive research, in medicine and science, and in agriculture and tourism, which will surely suffer as the state´s reputation is transformed from that of ´Pure Michigan´ into the terrorist prison peninsula."
Hoekstra has led the effort in Michigan and in Washington, D.C. against the Obama administration´s proposed plan to transfer terrorist detainees from Guantanamo Bay to a state prison, citing safety concerns for Michigan families. He also questioned the administration´s failure to demonstrate why Michigan would make a better alternative to the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay that was designed and built specifically to house al-Qaeda and other terrorist detainees at significant taxpayer expense.
"The administration is reportedly making pie-in-the-sky promises to local officials, but there is no guarantee that the federal and military jobs at Guantanamo Bay will go to local prison guards," Hoekstra said. "The administration´s lack of transparency and willingness to provide actual data on Gitmo and its detainees also raises significant doubts about the hard sell they are putting on local officials. I have led the effort in Congress for openness and transparency on this issue for all Americans, and until the president actually shows it, the people of Michigan would be wise to be wary of feds bearing so-called gifts."
Hoekstra, along with Republican Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other ranking Republicans, introduced the Keep Terrorists Out of America Act, H. R. 2294, to (1) affirm Congress´ opposition to transferring or releasing terrorists held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility into the United States; (2) prohibit the administration from transferring or releasing any terrorist detainees at Guantanamo Bay to any state without express approval from the state´s governor and legislature; and (3) prohibit the president from transferring or releasing a terrorist detainee into the United States unless he provides notification and certification to Congress.
"As a former business marketing executive for a Fortune 500 company, experience tells me that making Michigan home to the world´s most dangerous terrorists will not make it more attractive for tourists, families or potential job providers," said Hoekstra. "We need state leaders to pursue jobs for the future, the kind of jobs that attract new families and new business investment — in advanced technologies and automotive research, in medicine and science, and in agriculture and tourism, which will surely suffer as the state´s reputation is transformed from that of ´Pure Michigan´ into the terrorist prison peninsula."
Hoekstra has led the effort in Michigan and in Washington, D.C. against the Obama administration´s proposed plan to transfer terrorist detainees from Guantanamo Bay to a state prison, citing safety concerns for Michigan families. He also questioned the administration´s failure to demonstrate why Michigan would make a better alternative to the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay that was designed and built specifically to house al-Qaeda and other terrorist detainees at significant taxpayer expense.
"The administration is reportedly making pie-in-the-sky promises to local officials, but there is no guarantee that the federal and military jobs at Guantanamo Bay will go to local prison guards," Hoekstra said. "The administration´s lack of transparency and willingness to provide actual data on Gitmo and its detainees also raises significant doubts about the hard sell they are putting on local officials. I have led the effort in Congress for openness and transparency on this issue for all Americans, and until the president actually shows it, the people of Michigan would be wise to be wary of feds bearing so-called gifts."
Hoekstra, along with Republican Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other ranking Republicans, introduced the Keep Terrorists Out of America Act, H. R. 2294, to (1) affirm Congress´ opposition to transferring or releasing terrorists held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility into the United States; (2) prohibit the administration from transferring or releasing any terrorist detainees at Guantanamo Bay to any state without express approval from the state´s governor and legislature; and (3) prohibit the president from transferring or releasing a terrorist detainee into the United States unless he provides notification and certification to Congress.
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