White House Moves Forward With Thomson Purchase
Announcement in line with Governor Quinn's hopes
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The Obama administration plans to buy the prison at Thomson, Illinois no matter what Congress says.
Officials said Friday they are moving forward with plans to purchase the supermax facility despite a U.S. House Armed Services Committee vote to limit the administration's ability to build on the prison grounds, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Now if the president wants to convert the prison into a home for Gitmo detainees he’ll need the support of a full Congress.
But that doesn’t mean the administration can’t buy the place. They’ve already set aside money to do it. The next federal budget includes $170 million for the purchase of the facility and nearly $70 million to outfit it.
The White House announcement came hours after Governor Pat Quinn admitted that Guantanamo detainees likely weren’t going to make it to Illinois.
But he said he expected the Obama administration to purchase the property anyway.
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