APPROPRIATIONS: GOP Slams Plan To Try Conspirators In N.Y.

By Humberto Sanchez

U.S. Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) (2nd L) speaks as Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) (L) and Sen. John Thune (R-SD) (R) listen

Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., and other mostly Republican lawmakers today criticized the Obama administration’s announcement to prosecute five individuals charged with orchestrating the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in federal court in New York, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the man charged with co-planning the attacks.

“It is outrageous to think that the 9/11 conspirators should be tried in a New York federal court as if they are common criminals when, in reality, they planned the largest attack ever carried out on U.S. soil,” Inhofe said in a release. “This insults the memory of every American we lost on that catastrophic day as well as every member of our military who has fought so hard to defeat terrorism.”

Inhofe has offered an amendment to the $133.9 billion FY10 Military Construction-VA spending bill under consideration in the Senate that would prohibit funds in the measure or other passed spending bills from being used to construct or modify facilities in the United States to hold detainees from the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, terrorist detention center.

Bringing detainees stateside has alarmed and angered Republicans and some Democrats since President Obama’s Jan. 20 announcement that he hopes to close the facility within a year.

“President Obama has demonstrated an obsession for closing Gitmo, and this latest announcement proves he is willing to make an extreme gamble in order to fulfill that political objective,” Inhofe said. “This is the very reason I have repeatedly offered my Gitmo amendment on multiple funding bills.”

Republicans have argued that allowing terrorist suspects to be tried in federal court criminalizes their acts, which they believe were acts of war and are better handled in military tribunals.

The decision was announced today by Attorney General Holder, who said he was not concerned with the political fallout from the decision.

“My job as attorney general is to look at the law, apply the facts to the law and ultimately do what I think is in the best interest of this country and our system of justice.” Holder said. “To the extent that there are political consequences, I will just have to take my lumps to the extent those are set in my way. I am sure we will hear a lot of criticism.”

Holder also said that he expects to get convictions.

Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT)

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Chairman Joseph Lieberman also lamented the decision.

“The terrorists who planned, participated in and aided the September 11, 2001, attacks are war criminals, not common criminals,” he said. “Not only are these individuals not common criminals but war criminals, they are also not American citizens entitled to all the constitutional rights American citizens have in our federal courts.”

Last week Lieberman, along with Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., co-sponsored a Republican amendment to the $64.9 billion FY10 Commerce-Justice-Science spending bill that would have prevented funds from being used to try perpetrators of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in federal courts. The amendment was tabled, 54-45.

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