Mayor Maribeth Cosgove’s offer to the Obama administration to accept Guantanamo detainees [Our City to Become the Next Guantanamo?, 2.23] has been rescinded by an angry state governor’s office.
In a press release, Governor Allen (D) chastized Cosgrove for her rashness, and reminded her that the Ostahanoc River Maximum Security Prison is a federal, not a municipal, facility.
“Mayor Cosgrove seriously overstepped her jurisdiction in her offer to accept Guantanamo Bay detainees,” said the governor’s press release. “We here at the state level apologize to President Obama for having wasted his time, and will see to it that nothing like this ever happens again.”
Cosgrove (R) quickly issued a rebuttal to the governor’s letter.
“It seems as if our governor has failed to show the fortitude needed by all Americans during these difficult times,” said Cosgrove via e-mail to local media outlets. “I am ashamed that our state leadership has failed us, in stubbornly blocking us from fulfilling our patriotic duty.”
Despite Mayor Cosgrove’s rhetoric, a member of her staff (who asked not to be named) suggests that the mayor’s offer was made less out of a sense of duty, and more out of a sense
of desperation.
“This was nothing more than a business decision by the mayor,” said our source. “A last-ditch effort to find a way out of the ($728 million, five-year) city deficit without having to make politically compromising budget cuts. You didn’t think we’d take those terrorists off of Obama’s hands for free, did you?”
Another source was concerned about the effect the mayor’s stunt would have on the city’s share of stimulus package funds, much of which may be distributed from the state level.
The City Desk has been unable to reach a member of the Obama administration for comment.
— Ray Ingraham