Rep. Pete Hoekstra says it's just politics: Letter criticizes opposition to moving Gitmo detainees

Source: MLive

U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra is caught again in the crossfire over housing detainees from Guantanamo Bay in Michigan, this time in a letter from military officers and security experts blasting his stand. Hoekstra considers the letter nothing but partisan politics.

The letter, whose signers include former National Security Council head of counterterrorism Richard Clarke, accused Hoekstra of spreading "fear in order to score political points."

In particular, it faulted the Holland Republican for statements on the proposal to use the maximum security prison at Standish to house Guantanamo detainees.

Hoekstra, who is running for the 2010 GOP nomination for governor, has consistently criticized the idea. The Standish Maximum Correctional Facility is one of three state prisons and five prison camps slated to close to help Michigan deal with a nearly $2 billion budget deficit.

"We're now kind of painting a target on our back that wasn't there before," Hoekstra told state lawmakers earlier this month.

Read more: http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/08/rep_pete_hoekstra_says_its_jus.html

Along with Thaddeus McCuckoo.