today's speech well to help me break it all down i'm joined now by political commentator sam sax and david remes he's a human rights lawyer david thank you for joining us let's start with you did we learn anything coming out of today's speech well i can't speak as an expert to everything he spoke on but i don't think that we got very much new from him on guantanamo it was disappointing that he endorsed indefinite detention it was disappointing that he said he'd go back and re were you the yemenis to send home and most of all it's disappointing that he can to new. to blame congress for his

within our one hundred days of the time of our strike and there's no sign of it ending anytime soon david remes the human rights lawyer thank you so much for your time today thank you. well last month we told you about an incident involving a drunk man allegedly beating a muslim taxi driver after subjecting him to an eleven minute slur filled anti islam rant the taxi driver is thirty nine year old mohammed suddenly who by the way is a u.s. army veteran that served as a linguist during the iraq war the man he claims broke his job during a two minute two am taxi ride through virginia he is the president of the emerald aviation his name is ed dahlberg mr selene had the forethought to pull out his cell phone camera though and report record the entire exchange he now wants this to be treated as a hate crime are to correspondent margaret howell caught up with the taxi driver and brings us his tale. so much good. both of you are taxi driver mahomet's that we got more than he bargained for friday april twenty sixth when he picked up that were dahlberg for routine ride and that you are. a great saleman

break it all down i was joined earlier by political commentator sam sex and human rights lawyer david remes david began by talking about what we learned from today's speech. well i can't speak as an expert to everything he spoke on but i don't think that we got very much new from him on guantanamo it was disappointing that he endorsed indefinite detention it was disappointing that he said he'd go back and rework you the yemenis to send home and most of all it's disappointing that he can see to news to blame congress for his inability to transfer detainees back to their home countries or third countries he simply isn't willing to show the kind of political leadership that's required president obama addressed several issues through this hour long speech that he gave today let's play a part of what he said about guantanamo bay since we're talking about it and given my administration's relentless pursuit of al qaeda leadership there is no justification beyond politics for congress to prevent us from closing a facility that it should should have never been opened. today. so sam he laid out sever

the actions both the president and congress can take i was joined earlier by human rights lawyer david remes well i have compassion for every single man at guantanamo we've been fighting the legal fight for nine years and the courts haven't been responsive that's the forum where the government has succeeded unfortunately the courts have pulled out but right now we're in a situation where the detainees have exercised the only power that they have after all other. avenues have been exhausted and that is to engage in a hunger strike at the logic of a hunger strike is death. and some of the the hunger strike in the force feeding themselves many call that force feeding torture so let's talk about the steps that congress could take to fix the situation at guantanamo bay and then we'll talk about some of the steps that president obama himself can take to fix the situation let's start with congress nothing would satisfy us more than having congress act here they would lift the onerous certification requirements that they've imposed on obama before he can release detainees of course he has the power

to find out how the inmates assess the way they're being treated we have david remes he's an american lawyer representing seventeen guantanamo prisoners most of them on hunger strike they we just heard from that spokesman there of the camp saying the prisoners aren't telling the truth about what's going on there. well do you think that your clients are not telling the truth. i have compassion for every man at guantanamo their indefinite detention is on justifiable and it's a scandal and in the last three months they've taken matters into their own hands and exercise the only power that they have and that is to have a mass hunger strike some to the point where they are close enough to death that the military sees a need to force feed them none of them enjoy being force fed i can tell you that and they have described being force fed in such terms as having a knife run down their throat but the military is saying they need to keep these prisoners alive it's in the city and they're doing the right thing others are saying it amounts to torture collusion with. the fact is that for speeding

well thank you very much indeed david remes attorney representing seventeen one time to move in thank you very much indeed for your time let's get more reaction now on the speech with author and activist david swanson. so. you'll first impressions david all of that address concerning national security but what do you make of it. a lot of rhetoric not much substance rhetoric that pleas still barmah fans but not even some of the things that have been reported would be in it were in it in terms of substance nothing on taking the drones away from the cia he suggested that he would review yemeni cases in guantanamo one by one but not when they're our how publicly or what would the results be he suggested that old timidly he would like the authorization for the use of military force repealed but in the meantime he would like it refined whatever that might mean he said the war in afghanistan would end some day he didn't say a day or a month or a year he provided absolutely no evidence to support government claims around the killing of lockie or of the other three americans including his teen

being force fed a procedure that lawyers have described as plain brutal david remes who represents some seventeen guantanamo bay inmates told us of their motivation and ultimately what it's costing them. as you would imagine the others who are. are we. can manage but it's with. all of. between forty five pounds and sixty pounds and it's really a horrifying situation then shouldn't have to do this to get it and then the american public and they shouldn't have to do this in order to cry out for their release the commander of the joint detention group he's effectively the warden of the. prison for the detainees he has refused to talk to them until they stop their hunger strike i have to say that it's sort of a macho pose on his charges so he's just not going to flame first he could have saw all this hunger strike within three or four days if he had sat down with them and talked with them about their concerns and found a pragmatic solution that's what is practical that's true yet after three months he has not been willing to discuss the matter after all this raid i'm afraid that some men ma

here to stay so obama is going to have another try and shutting guantanamo brain but it's only david remes you represent seventeen going to move the inmates so this off to an even worse start to the second the terms. we had been led to expect at least in the media that president obama would do something constructive all he offered however were the same empty promises that he's offered before he continues to defend indefinite detention he is going to appoint an envoy who has no power to do anything beyond what obama allows him to do he keeps plame in congress for the problem when he has the authority to transfer men and appointing a special envoy actually he didn't he simply designated a point person within the pentagon to address these issues my fear is that people will conclude from listening to this speech that there is forward motion the problem has been solved guantanamo is closed and everybody can go on to other things that's exactly what happened in two thousand and nine and i'm very sorry that there was no forward movement here exultant democrats heading above his speech is a new be

military now two dozen being force fed a procedure that lawyers have described as plain brutal david remes who represents some seventeen guantanamo inmates told us of their motivation and what it's costing them. to work being forced out. as you would imagine the others who are. hungry striking are weak find it difficult they can manage but it's difficult all of. a considerable amount. twenty forty five pounds and sixty pounds and it's really a horrifying situation and shouldn't have to do this to get it and ten of the american public and they shouldn't have to do this in order to cry out for their release but the commander of the joint detention group music that warden of the. prison for the detainees has refused to talk to them until they stop their strike i ask you to say that it's sort of a macho pose on his part is just not going to blink first he could have solved his hunger strike within three or four days if he had sat down with them and talked with them about their concerns and found a pragmatic solution that's what his predecessor yet after three months he has not been willing to

procedure condemned by the un as torture the number of of those in hospital has also increased now david remes a lawyer representing more than a dozen guantanamo detainees says with a lack of concrete action obama's promising speech looks small and more like smoke and mirrors as for one thing president obama keeps blaming congress for preventing him from transferring detainees as long as he puts the responsibility on congress it's unlikely that he'll make major moves in addition. he set up this new system for releasing yemenis whereby they have to go through yet another review process which is likely to take a long time if it happens at all so i think that. what he said sounded good as usual but once again. it only provides the illusion of movement it's that men face a very bleak circumstance and guantanamo in terms of being transferred. to the father of one time a prisoner who also has the kuwaiti detainees in guantanamo coming he described his son's condition after almost four months on hunger strike. my son been there for eleven years without having justice and he is there without committin

military twenty four are being force fed a procedure that lawyers have condemned as brutal david remes who represents seventeen guantanamo inmates told us what is motivating them. to. as you would imagine the others who are. are we. can manage but it's. all of. if twenty forty five pounds and sixty pounds and it's really a horrifying situation then shouldn't have to do this to get it and one of the american public in the shouldn't have to do this in order to cry out for their release the commander of the joint detention group who's exactly what warden of the . prison for the detainees as refused to talk to them until they stop their strike i abstained that it sort of a macho pose on his part is just not going to first he could have solved his hunger strike within three or four days if he had sat down with them and talk with them about their concerns and found a pragmatic solution that's what is. returning now to one of our top stories the u.s. secretary of state's visit to moscow john kerry has held talks with the russian leadership with the two sides polarized over the conflict in syr

military two dozen right now being force fed procedure that lawyers have described as plain brutal david remes who represents some seventeen guantanamo bay in a mate's told us here of his motivation and ultimately what it's costing them at the end of the day. to force. as you would imagine the others who are. hungry are we find it difficult to. manage but it's with. all of. the considerable. twenty forty five sixty pounds and it's really a horrifying situation in britain after just to get it and. of the american public should do this in order to cry out there will be the commander of the joint detention group whose exact warden of the. prison for the detainees has refused to talk to the family until they stop their hunger strike i actually say that it's sort of a macho pose on the part. of first he could have solved this hunger strike with them or if he had sat down with them and talk with them about their concerns and found a pragmatic solution that's what. yet three months he has not been willing to discuss the man ever after all this rape i'm afraid that some men may die. because the milita

that attorney david remes who represents seventeen guantanamo bay inmates thinks that obama's speech was just simply full of empty promises speech was a deep disappointment we had been led to expect at least in the media that president obama would do something constructive all he offered however were the same empty promises that he's offered. he continues to defend indefinite detention in the news who will say well he lifted the ban on the transfer of yemenis that's a nice gesture i have to say it's a gesture though because as long as he blames congress for not letting him transfer anyone it doesn't really matter and he was the one who imposed the obstacle in the first place. i just i just think that this is an unfortunate speech because it will give the illusion of progress where there is no progress at all. well obama's iron clad way of battling terrorists certainly spotted heated debate during his speech in washington at one point the president was stopped in his tracks by an angry audience member. my colleague i've across he outlined what made the woman break obama's scripted aut

indefinite detention and inhumane treatment the majority of them may remain held without charge attorney david remes who represents seventeen inmates in guantanamo doesn't feel there's any reason to believe obama will actually fulfill his promises. the speech was a deep disappointment we had been led to expect at least in the media that president obama would do something constructive all he offered however were the same empty promises that he's offered if. he continues to defend indefinite detention the news who will say well he lifted the ban on the transfer of yemenis that's a nice gesture i have to say it's a gesture though because as long as he blames congress for not letting him transfer anyone that doesn't really matter and he was the one who imposed the obstacle in the first place. i just i just think that this is an unfortunate speech because it will give the illusion of progress where there is no progress at all. after the break as promised we continue our look at the world of genetically modified things. although i was born after the vietnam era i remember t.v. discussions about that buddh

human rights lawyer david remes represents 17 guantanamo bay prisoners and described the process of forceeding. >> it can be extremely painful. one of my clients said it is like having a razor blade go down through your nose and into your throat. they restrain detainees who do not need to be restrained. that has been happening during the hunger strike because they want to make it as miserable as possible to be on hunger strike. they use tubes that are larger than necessary, circumference wise, which causes extra unnecessary pain. if a detainee resists being taken from his cell to before said, a team of riot squads soldiers, that all quite robocops, enter and drag him there. it is really liked -- it is really like the way you treat an animal. that is really it. >> a spokesperson for the high commission on human rights described the force feeding as "worrying." >> it is clearly against the will of the people being forcibly fed than in the world of the medical association and our view, this would amount to cruel and degrading treatment which is not permissible under international law. >> par

break it all down i was joined earlier by political commentator sam sachs and human rights lawyer david remes david began by talking about what we learned from today's speech well i can't speak as an expert to everything he spoke on but i don't think that we got very much new from him on guantanamo it was disappointing that he endorsed indefinite detention it was disappointing that he said he'd go back and rework you the yemenis to send home and most of all it's disappointing that he can to news to blame congress for his inability to transfer detainees back to their home countries or third countries he simply isn't willing to show the kind of political leadership that's required president obama addressed several issues through this hour long speech that he gave today let's play a part of what he said about guantanamo bay since we're talking about it and given my administration's relentless pursuit of al qaida leadership there is no one justification beyond politics for congress to prevent us from closing a facility that it should should have never been open. today. so sam he laid out several