Homeland Security Show | Episode 20

Why Isn’t Gitmo Closed?

In the 2008 election cycle, a group of 40 retired generals and admirals lobbied every Presidential candidate to stop torture of enemy combatants, close Gitmo, and try those with sufficient evidence in U.S. federal courts. In January 2009, President Obama signed four Executive Order to do exactly that. But it never happened. Among the key lobbyists in that campaign was a member of the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame, retired Lieutenant General Harry Ed Soyster. Soyster was director of the Defense Intelligence Agency during major historical periods, including Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990s. Under Soyster’s direction, military intelligence for our forces during Desert Storm received fully integrated, 24/7 intelligence. Lt. Gen. Soyster, with over ten years deep in intelligence, knows what works and what does not work in gathering information. He told me his stories, explained the Defense Intelligence Agency’s mission, but mostly we discussed the serious issue of why he– and his 39 military colleagues, volunteered to join forces to end torture and close Gitmo and why President Obama failed to close Gitmo after all the campaign promises to do so.

Homeland Security Show