Long before President Barack Obama's trip this week, the U.S. has had a physical foothold in Cuba at Guantanamo Bay. Obama's seeking to close down the detention center there. But Illinois' Senators are split on its future.
Republicans like Illinois Senator Mark Kirk are adamant the Guantanamo Bay prison stay open. Kirk recently penned an op-ed with a list of his concerns. He advocates a continued prohibition on moving detainees to the U.S.
"I would say to those who are defending Guantanamo Bay, they are defending spending $5 mill a year on each detainee we're holding in Guantanamo.”
That's Illinois other U.S. Senator, Dick Durbin, who says prisons here, including one in Illinois, already house terrorists.
"So to say that we've got to maintain Guantanamo for some sort of symbol, it's a pretty darned expensive symbol."
Durbin, a Democrat, accompanied Obama on the trip to Cuba.
