by TChris

Closing the Gulag detention facility at Guantanamo would put an end to a public relations disaster and begin to repair the image of the United States as a country that cares about human rights. President Carter and Senator Biden are among many who want President Bush (in Carter’s words) "to close down Guantanamo and the two dozen secret detention facilities run by the United States as soon as possible."

"Not gonna happen" was the essence of Donald Rumsfeld's response, as reported in this morning's New York Times. Apparently President Bush didn't get the memo.

President Bush left the door open to an eventual closing of the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay on Wednesday amid mounting complaints and calls for it to be shut down ....

President Bush's pledge to "explore all alternatives" wasn't a ringing endorsement of President Carter's request. Still, his refusal to rule out Guantanamo's closing confirms that President Bush doesn't read the morning papers. By tomorrow, expect Bush and Rumsfeld to be on the same page: everything's just fine, it's all the left wing media, there's no need for change.