• Mike Huckabee is against the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba feels that the
question of Guantanamo is more of a 'symbolic issue' rather than anything else. The detainees
according to him are treated better than the prisoners in the mainland. 

• "It's (Guantanamo) more symbolic than it is a substantive issue because people perceive of
mistreatment when in fact there are extraordinary means being taken to make sure these detainees are
being given really every consideration," Huckabee said.

• Huckabee commented about the detention centre operated by military in the Guantanamo Bay as
follows: "The inmates there were getting a whole lot better treatment in comparison to the prisoners
in Arkansas. I hope our guys don't see this," said Huckabee. "They'll all want to be transferred to
Guantanamo. If anything, it's too nice," added Huckabee.

• "But I tell you if we let somebody out and it turns out that they come and fly an airliner
into one of our skyscrapers, we're going to be asking how come we didn't stop them, we had them
detained," he said. "If we're going to make a mistake right now, let's make it on the side of
protecting the American people."

• The existing system of dealing with the terror suspects detained in the Guantanamo,
according to Huckabee's opinion, "reveals what's gone wrong" in the war against terrorism. He feels
that erring for the sake of protecting the American citizens proves to be a better choice.

• Obama has always been critical of U.S. detention policies and says too many prisoners
languish in Guantanamo without fair trials. ? As a senator, Obama voted YES on preserving habeus
corpus for Guantanamo detainees.  He stated, "Why don't we close Guantanamo and restore the right of
habeas corpus, because that's how we lead, not with the might of our military, but the power of our
ideals and the power of our values. It's time to show the world we're not a country that ships
prisoners in the dead of night to be tortured in far off countries. We're not a country that runs
prisons which locks people away without ever telling them why they're there or what they're charged
with. We're not a country which preaches compassion to others while we allow bodies to float down
the streets of major American cities. That's not who we are."

• In May 2008 while campaigning in North Carolina, Obama said, ?We can set the highest
standards around the world for human rights and rule of law and close Guantanamo and restore habeas
corpus." 

• In May 2009 Obama announced a plan which would lead to the closure of Guantanamo Bay prison
within a year. The plan called for terror suspects locked up in the prison to be brought to the
United States mainland where they would be tried and prosecuted. Of the detainees who would be
brought to the country, some would be set free. The rest would be able to exercise constitutional
rights and would undergo open trials. Nearly one year later we are no closer to closing Guantanamo
and sources say it will take another year to accomplish.   It is still not clear where the how the
detainees will be tried or the location of the trials. 

• Obama is strongly against the idea of trying the terror suspects in the Cuban island
itself, an idea that was favored by George Bush. Obama advisers who charted out the plan believe
that the process of bringing the suspects to the mainland might be complicated and may invite
controversies but that is not a task that cannot be accomplished. Obama advisers are of the notion
that the detainees can be guarded as well in the US as anywhere else. 

• Obama's plan proposes a novel court system which will be a sort of military commissions
dispensing justice. A committee will be set up to decide the workings of the court. The detainees
who will be released will be sent back to the countries from where they were captured for further
proceedings if any. Others may be prosecuted in the US criminal courts.

• Obama argues that the Military Commissions Act of 2006 is flawed and calls for a reform of
the trials from its present format. Obama is all for "a process that adheres to rule of law, habeas
corpus, basic principles of Anglo-American legal system, but doing it in a way that doesn't result
in releasing people who are intent on blowing us up."

• Sarah Palin is against Obama's plan to close the Guantanamo Bay prison and believes his plan
is a reckless one. Palin is generally against Obama's approach to terrorism, viewing it as
fundamentally flawed.

• Palin believes that the terrorists of Guantanamo should be treated as wartime enemies and
not as suspects who are only alleged to have committed crimes. Palin feels that a terrorist who is
responsible for the massacre of hundreds of people should not be treated as a common criminal. 

• Palin believes that taking strong military measures might be the right approach in dealing
with the terrorists. The real nature of terrorism must be addressed in the form of a military
commander-in-chief. Dealing the terrorists by a constitutional law professor is by no means a wise
decision. Thus Palin discredits the importance of law and legal mechanisms in dealing with the
terror suspects or terrorists. 

• Palin believes that radical Islam extremism, with which America is at war, is not a mere
law enforcement issue. It only tends to compromise the nation's security as was witnessed in the
1990s and most importantly on 11th September 2001.

• According to Palin, the constitutional provisions which Obama's plan tries to implement
will grant the foreign born terrorists the privilege to remain silent which will further risk the
lives of many Americans. Giving them access to the American courtrooms will only result in the
manipulation of the legal system. This might also give them the access to classified information
too. 

• Acts of terrorism are not isolated events but well orchestrated events. They are to be
dealt with stringently. Closing down the Guantanamo prison and giving them a trial in the mainland
US is not the option.

• Mitt Romney is known for his rather 'explosive' views against closing down Guantanamo Bay
prison. 

• "You said they're at Guantanamo? I'm glad they're at Guantanamo. I don't want them on our
soil. I want them at Guantanamo where they don't get the access to lawyers that they'd get when
they're on our soil. I don't want them in our prisons, I want them there. Some people say that we
should close Guantanamo, my view is: ?We outta double Guantanamo."

• Not only the prison itself needs to be doubled but the torture techniques used in the
interrogation need to be improvised. The quote goes: "we ought to make sure that the terrorists...
and there's no question but that in settling like that where you have the ticking bomb, that the
President of the United States- not the CIA interrogator- the President of the United States has to
make the call. And Enhanced Interrogation Techniques have to be used ? not torture, but enhanced
interrogation techniques. Yes."

• Romney feels that closing down the prison is certainly a wrong act. In Helena, Montana,
Romney while interacting with the reporters said: "Guantanamo Bay plays an important role in
protecting our nation from violent, heinous terrorists."

• "I hope the administration does not take the course which is being contemplated. I think
Guantanamo is a symbol of our resolve."

• The former Massachusetts governor had visited the Guantanamo Bay in the spring of 2006. He
said he "came away with no concerns with regards to the fair and appropriate treating of these
individuals."   Romney would not hesitate to bring about the harshest interrogation techniques in
the wake of a severe terrorist threat.

Politcks