White House warns Obama may veto bill limits Guantanamo options

The White House Tuesday evening notified House sponsors of the National Defense Authorization Act that President Obama may veto the legislation unless changes are made in a number of provisions, including those that limit the options of the President in attempting to close the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In a policy statement from the Office of Management and Budget, the Obama administration said it "strongly objects" to sections in the legislation "which unwisely and inappropriately interfere with the Executive Branch's ability to manage detainees in a time of armed conflict." These provisions would continue funding restrictions that would prohibit the construction or modification of a detention facility in the United States to house Guantanamo detainees "and would constrain our ability to transfer Guantanamo detainees, including those who have already been designated for transfer to other countries," the statement said. "Operating the facility at Guantanamo weakens our national security by wasting resources, damaging our relationships with key allies and reinforcing propaganda used by al-Qaeda to attack the United States and our values," it said. Prohibiting the transfer of detainees to the United States and restricting the transfer of detainees to the custody or control of foreign countries may interfere with the Executive Branch's ability to determine the appropriate disposition of detainees and to make important foreign policy and national security determinations regarding whether and under what circumstances such transfers should occur, the White House said. In addition, the restrictions would, in certain circumstances, violate constitutional separation of powers principles, it said. "They are also completely unnecessary," the statement said. "Even in the absence of these restrictions, the administration has worked - and in the future would work - to ensure that any country receiving a detainee would take appropriate security and treatment measures if any detainee is transferred." Another section of the legislation purports to require the Secretary of Defense to publicly release unclassified summaries containing information about detainees at the Parwan Detention Factility in Afghanistan -- who are determined to represent an enduring security threat to the United States -- no later than 120 days after the bill's enactment. "This provision would intrude on the President's constitutional authority to maintain the confidentiality of sensitive national security information," the White House said. "The administration urges that the provision be deleted or revised to make clear that public disclosure of this information is encouraged, but not mandatory." If the bill is presented to Obama in its current form, the President's advisers would recommend that he veto it, the statement said.