Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, tells Fox News that the Guantanamo Bay prison facility that houses terrorist detainees in Cuba should be closed because of the questionable way prisoners were captured.
"It should be closed because we don't need it,” Paul, a former presidential candidate, told The Glenn Beck Show’s substitute host Andrew Napolitano.
“It was unnecessary, the way these prisoners were captured was very questionable, Paul said. “They haven't had really due process. So, the real thugs that need to be tried, they ought to be tried."
On Thursday, the Senate voted to block the millions of dollars needed to close the prison, while the House voted down a similar measure last week, saying President Barack Obama hasn't presented a solid plan for what to do with the prisoners.
“They've deleted the funding mainly because the Republicans have really won the argument,” Paul said. “If you don't support the continuation of these military tribunals and you don't support Guantanamo, maybe you support sending these people into your district and they'll be your neighbors,” he explained.
“The Democrats were convinced that [the Republicans] won the PR fight, and so therefore, [the Democrats] all became squeamish. And even the president backed down. That's why there's no funding for closing Guantanamo, and I guess it will be open for an indefinite future.”
Paul said the key to closing the facility is first to show why the detainees are there, and then prove that they've done something wrong in some legitimate recognized court of law.
“I think that's the key to it. And so far, they don't have an answer, because they're not allowing them to be tried in a legitimate court of law.”
Paul said a good example of what to do with alleged terrorists was set with the individuals involved in the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993.
“I mean, we even went into Pakistan, arrested them, brought them over here, tried them in our court system, and they're not our neighbors,” Paul pointed out. “They are in a federal prison and nobody feels threatened by them. So, I'm not so sure why they are so determined not to pursue the law.”
Paul argued that the debate on what to do with the detainees at Guantanamo Bay has been politicized enough. He conceded that politicians are going to win the argument and the rule of law will not prevail.