Obama guaranteed Gitmo would be closed two years ago

It was his fifth swipe of the pen on Jan. 22, 2009. The executive order required Gitmo be closed no later than one year from the date of the order. As far as I can tell, the EO was never rescinded, rather there was supplements that simply gave up the idea. I often wonder why the left never calls out President Obama on not closing Gitmo when it was such a big part of his election campaign in 2008.

Just as a reminder, Executive Order 13492, signed by the president three years ago yesterday, in part required …

Sec. 3. Closure of Detention Facilities at Guanta´namo. The detention facilities at Guanta´namo for individuals covered by this order shall be closed as soon as practicable, and no later than 1 year from the date of this order.  If any individuals covered by this order remain in detention at Guanta´namo  at the time of closure of those detention facilities, they shall be returned  to their home country, released, transferred to a third country, or transferred  to another United States detention facility in a manner consistent with  law and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States.

In March 2011, the Obama administration ended a difficult chapter (per NPR) on Guantanamo for the president.

President Obama’s order to resume military trials at Guantanamo Bay and establish a system to hold some detainees indefinitely ends a difficult chapter in the story of the U.S. prison and the Obama White House.

Obama came into office two years ago promising to close the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, within a year. The executive order he announced Monday serves as acknowledgment that it will remain open for some time.

The order lends formal permission to the policy by which the U.S. has held detainees at the prison — detainees who, in most cases, have not been charged or convicted but are deemed too dangerous to release. It also ends a two-year ban on the use of military commissions to try suspected terrorists.

Obama said Monday that his new policies will help “bring terrorists to justice.” But the new policy statement wasn’t much more than a recognition of fact and frustration.

Reality bites huh?

Note how Mara Liasson, writing for NPR, wrote the piece implying the issue is now closed. It was not what they wanted, but since the president tried, that’s all that matters. Did those who voted for hope and change just give up on their requirement Obama close the camp? Did they just drop it because Obama tried and failed?

Or maybe the media just dropped the issue, taking it off the table so Obama will not have to deal with the issue during his campaign for a second term?