MANHATTAN, KAN. – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) today released the following statement after reports that the administration is conducting site visits and may transfer detainees from Guantanamo Bay to Ft. Leavenworth, Kan.:

“I have serious concerns about the latest reports that the Obama Administration is conducting site surveys and continues to consider transferring detainees from Guantanamo Bay. Terrorists should not be living down the road from Ft. Leavenworth – home to thousands of Army soldiers and their families, as well as military personnel from across the globe who study at the Intellectual Center of the Army.

“I have repeatedly been part of efforts in Congress to prevent the facility’s closure and block the transfer of detainees to American soil, not only through legislation but also through the annual defense authorization bill. I will continue to push to prohibit the transfer of prisoners to Kansas or anywhere else in the United States. This administration’s last-ditch effort to carry out President Obama’s reckless national security decision before he leaves office is disingenuous and flawed.”

Sen. Moran has long advocated against relocating Guantanamo Bay detainees. He sponsors the Detaining Terrorists to Protect America Act (S. 165), which prohibits the transfer to the United States of detainees designated medium- or high-risk for two years. S. 165 would also ban transfers to Yemen, where dozens of the 127 remaining Guantanamo detainees are from.

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