Holder faces bipartisan resistance to Guantanamo plan

By Terry Frieden
CNN Justice Producer
WASHINGTON (CNN) - Attorney General Eric Holder, faced with bipartisan resistance, promised a Senate committee Thursday he will not release suspected terrorists held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, into the United States.

He was less clear about what would be done with any detainees the administration decides are not terrorists.

Holder faced tough questioning from fellow Democrat Barbara Mikulski of Maryland, who demanded "consultation" with lawmakers and governors before a decision is made, and insisted on "no surprises."

Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said the plan to close the detention facility on the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo "presents a clear and present danger to American lives."
Holder emphasized he has made no decisions about whether or when any of the 241 remaining Guantanamo detainees may be moved.

He told the panel he expects some of the detainees who the administration determines are not terrorists to be released but did not say when or where. "I would expect in the next few months, though, that we would probably start that process," he said.