Senators Critique Costs of Migrant Mission at Guantánamo Bay
During a recent visit to the U.S. military base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, a bipartisan group of five U.S. senators expressed strong criticism regarding the ongoing migrant operation at the facility. The senators raised concerns over the substantial resources being utilized for the mission, particularly after the Pentagon disclosed that the operation had incurred an estimated cost of $40 million in just its first month.
The Senate delegation, which visited the base on Friday, toured various Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities currently housing around 85 migrants. Among these facilities was a prison that had previously been used to detain wartime prisoners linked to Al Qaeda. The senators engaged with officials from both the Defense and Homeland Security Departments during their visit. Notably, about 1,000 government personnel, predominantly from the military, are involved in staffing this migrant operation.
Since February, the administration has processed fewer than 400 male migrants, with at least half of them identified as Venezuelan nationals, as part of President Trump’s stringent measures aimed at curbing illegal immigration. Furthermore, authorities have returned approximately half of these individuals to locations within the United States, leaving many to question the necessity of holding a significant number of people at Guantánamo for what are often brief stays. As of the latest updates on Sunday, the facility was housing 105 immigration detainees.
Senator Jack Reed of New Hampshire, a member of the visiting delegation, expressed his disapproval of the administration’s strategy, stating that it was misguided to “divert troops from their primary missions” to support operations at Guantánamo. In a follow-up interview, Senator Reed, who serves as the ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, revealed that he was informed of the staggering cost estimate for the operation, highlighting concerns over fiscal responsibility and resource allocation.
