Plan to Move Guantanamo Detainees Hits Funding Roadblock

A plan to move the some of the detainees at Guantanamo Bay to an underutilized correctional facility in Illinois hit an unexpected roadblock when Congress refused to allocate funds for purchasing the prison, the New York Times reports. Without that funding, the White House says it will likely be unable to close the infamous military prison in Cuba until at least 2011.

President Obama has admitted that his administration will not meet the Jan. 22 deadline for closing Guantanamo that he set shortly after taking office. Still, earlier this month he directed officials to move "as expeditiously as possible" toward purchasing the Thomson Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison that would be remodeled to handle the detainees. Officials say modifications could take eight to 10 months, and they cannot begin until the government has purchased the facility from the State of Illinois.

The White House approached the House Appropriations Committee about including $200 million for the project in a military spending bill, but Democratic leaders refused to be associated with the controversial move. When the bill passed the House, it included no funds for Thomson. The next funding bill for Afghanistan -- the administration's next best chance at obtaining the money -- will not be put forth until March or April.