[House Report 111-384]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
111th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 111-384
======================================================================
REQUESTING THE PRESIDENT TO TRANSMIT TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ALL DOCUMENTS IN THE POSSESSION OF THE PRESIDENT RELATING TO THE
EFFECTS ON FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE COLLECTION OF THE TRANSFER OF DETAINEES
HELD AT NAVAL STATION, GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA, INTO THE UNITED STATES
_______
December 16, 2009.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be
printed
_______
Mr. Reyes, from the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
together with
MINORITY VIEWS
[To accompany H. Res. 923]
The Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, to whom was
referred the resolution (H. Res. 923) requesting the President
to transmit to the House of Representatives all documents in
the possession of the President relating to the effects on
foreign intelligence collection of the transfer of detainees
held at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, into the United
States, having considered the same, report favorably thereon
with an amendment and recommend that the resolution be agreed
to.
The amendment is as follows:
Strike all after the resolving clause and insert the
following:
That the President is requested to transmit to the House of
Representatives not later than 14 days after the adoption of this
resolution a document (which may be transmitted in classified form, if
appropriate) that provides a summary of the effects on foreign
intelligence collection of the transfer of detainees held at Naval
Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, into the United States.
PURPOSE
H. Res. 923 requests that the President submit to the House
of Representatives a summary, in classified form if necessary,
of the effects that the transfer of detainees held at the U.S.
Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to the United States
might have on the collection of foreign intelligence
information.
BACKGROUND
On January 22, 2009, President Barack Obama issued
Executive Order 13492, Review and Disposition of Individuals
Detained at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base and Closure of
Detention Facilities. The order requires that the detention
facilities at Guantanamo Bay be closed promptly ``in order to
effect the appropriate disposition'' of the detainees held
there.
On November 13, 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder
announced that several of these detainees would be transferred
to the United States for prosecution. The plans to transfer
these detainees, along with the prospect that other detainees
may be transferred, to the United States have led some to ask
whether these transfers would have an effect on the
government's foreign intelligence collection efforts.
The resolution asks the President to provide a summary of
the effects that these transfers might have on U.S.
intelligence collection efforts.
SCOPE OF COMMITTEE REVIEW
No hearings were held in the Committee on H. Res. 923.
OVERSIGHT FINDINGS
In compliance with Clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the
findings and recommendations of the Committee are incorporated
in the descriptive portion of this report.
GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives does not apply, as H. Res. 923 does not
authorize funding.
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT
Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the House of Representatives
does not apply, as H. Res. 923 is not a bill or a joint
resolution that may be enacted into law.
COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION AND ROLL CALL VOTES
On December 15, 2009, the Committee met in open session and
ordered the resolution, as amended, to be reported favorably to
the House.
In open session, the Committee considered the text of the
resolution, H. Res. 923.
Chairman Reyes offered an amendment to H. Res. 923, which
requests that the President provide a summary, in classified
form if necessary, of the effects of detainee relocation on
intelligence collection. The amendment was approved by a record
vote of 10 ayes and 7 noes.
Voting aye: Mr. Reyes, Mr. Hastings, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Holt,
Mr. Ruppersberger, Mr. Thompson, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schiff,
Mr. Smith, Mr. Boren.
Voting no: Mr. Hoekstra, Mr. Gallegly, Mr. Thornberry, Mr.
Rogers, Mr. Miller, Mr. Conaway, Mr. King.
The Committee then voted to favorably report H. Res. 923,
as amended, by a record vote of 10 ayes and 7 noes.
Voting aye: Mr. Reyes, Mr. Hastings, Ms. Eshoo, Mr. Holt,
Mr. Ruppersberger, Mr. Thompson, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schiff,
Mr. Smith, Mr. Boren.
Voting no: Mr. Hoekstra, Mr. Gallegly, Mr. Thornberry, Mr.
Rogers, Mr. Miller, Mr. Conaway, Mr. King.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS AND EXPLANATION OF THE AMENDMENT
This resolution requests that the President submit to the
House of Representatives a summary, in classified form if
necessary, of the effects that the transfer of detainees held
at the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, might have
on collection of foreign intelligence information.
STATEMENT OF FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT
H. Res. 923 includes no Federal mandates.
STATEMENT ON CONGRESSIONAL EARMARKS
Clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of
Representatives does not apply, as H. Res. 923 is not a bill or
a joint resolution.
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATE
In compliance with clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee estimates that
implementing the resolution would not result in any significant
costs. The Congressional Budget Office did not provide a cost
estimate for the resolution.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED
H. Res. 923 makes no changes to existing law.
MINORITY VIEWS
The potential relocation of hardcore al Qaeda terrorists
into the United States has significant ramifications for both
national security and the security of the individual
communities to which detainees from the Guantanamo Bay
detention facility may be moved. Accordingly, we have been
gravely disappointed at the failure of this Administration to
keep the Congress fully and currently informed with respect to
its intentions in this regard. It is unfortunate that it is
necessary to file a Resolution of Inquiry to try to obtain even
basic information on the potential hazards and consequences of
such a move, and it is disappointing that the Committee would
water down such a resolution by allowing the Administration to
provide only the information it chooses instead of conducting
meaningful oversight.
While we support any effort to obtain further information
from the Executive Branch on this subject, we cannot endorse
this resolution in its current form. We hope that the so-called
``most open and transparent Administration in history'' will be
more forthcoming going forward, and that the Committee will be
more willing to do the oversight work it is charged under the
Constitution.
As introduced by Ranking Member Hoekstra, H. Res. 923
requested the President to produce to the Committee all
documents that relate to the potential effects on intelligence
collection that may result from bringing Guantanamo detainees
to the United States. The potential loss of such intelligence
collection should be central to any consideration of whether to
relocate detainees from the existing facility at Guantanamo
into the United States.
This matter is extremely timely. The Obama Administration
has recently announced that it intends to move hardcore al
Qaeda terrorists to the United States for detention, even
though right now that use of funds is prohibited by law and
even though it has refused to brief either this Committee or
the Committee on Armed Services in advance with respect to its
intentions. In fact, we learned that this move was impending
when a draft Executive Order was made public--not by the ``most
open and transparent Administration in history,'' but instead
by an Internet Weblog. The decision was made even though the
relevant Committees of Congress still have not been consulted.
The American people have a right to know what kind of
hardcore terrorists are being brought to their neighborhoods,
what kind of threats they pose, and the serious questions that
do not yet appear to have been addressed that must be answered
before taking such an extreme step. One of these questions is
the impact that such a move could have on intelligence
collection, including potential warning of future attacks on
the United States, or intelligence that could affect the safety
and security of the American communities in which these
terrorists will be relocated. The resolution also would require
fuller disclosure and transparency on potential intelligence
losses.
We have asked repeatedly for briefings on this matter,
beginning almost immediately after the President's Executive
Order to implement his campaign promise to close Guantanamo by
the end of the year--a promise that almost certainly will not
be kept. For almost a year now, there has been little but
stonewalling and a refusal to discuss the hard questions. We
have asked until we are blue in the face. There have been no
answers. We hope that all Members of this Committee would want
any information that is available to conduct oversight on this
topic, because we currently have almost none. This resolution
should not be contentious or controversial, and all Members of
the Committee should have supported it on a bipartisan basis.
Instead, the Committee on a partisan vote adopted an
amendment to water down the Resolution of Inquiry. It now
requests only an Administration-prepared ``summary'' of the
information instead of the documents themselves. This
completely defeats the purpose and Constitutional function of
Congressional oversight. We simply cannot outsource our
responsibilities to the Administration. The Committee has to
conduct vigorous and independent oversight, and the amendment
accomplishes neither.
The lack of transparency is not limited to the
Administration. We also must note that on December 8, 2009,
Republican members of the Illinois delegation--including
Representatives Manzullo, Shimkus, Biggert, Kirk, Johnson,
Roskam and Schrock--requested access to classified information
held by the Committee that should be highly relevant to any
decision to bring Guantanamo detainees to the State of
Illinois. Ranking Member Hoekstra reinforced this request in a
followup letter dated December 11, 2009 and made an independent
motion under the Committee Rules that a redacted version of the
classified material be made available to these Members. The
Committee Rules explicitly require such requests to be
considered at the ``earliest practicable opportunity'', and yet
the Chairman refused to schedule the matter at the Committee
business meeting considering this request.
The Committee Rules nowhere authorize consideration to be
delayed for the purpose of consulting the Executive Branch,
which was the reason cited for the delay. The information is
highly material to the decision that will directly affect
citizens in the districts of each of these Members of Congress.
Simple fairness demands that we consider this request
immediately, yet that was not done as we believe was required.
Accordingly, we wish to note this point of order and our
objection for the record.
The decisions that have been announced on Guantanamo
detainees need to be fully considered in sunlight, not forced
upon an American people who have not been given access to all
of the facts. This Committee has a right to know on behalf of
the American people, and we will continue to press for some
meaningful transparency.
Peter Hoekstra.
Elton Gallegly.
Mac Thornberry.
Mike Rogers.
Sue Myrick.
Roy Blunt.
Jeff Miller.
K. Michael Conaway.
Peter T. King.