text: Opinions on closing the prison have changed little since 2009 
   
   WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Twenty-nine percent of Americans support closing the terrorist detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and moving its prisoners to U.S. prisons, while two in three (66%) oppose the idea. Despite the recent controversy surrounding the release of five Taliban prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay in exchange for U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Berghdal's release from Afghanistan, Americans' views have barely budged since 2009. 
   
   These results are from a June 5-8 Gallup poll conducted days after the release of Sgt. Bergdahl. Gallup found that Americans are divided on the wisdom of negotiating with terrorist groups to secure the release of Americans prisoners. 
   
   President Barack Obama made the closing of Guantanamo Bay a part of his 2008 campaign platform, but he has yet to do so. However, he recently reiterated his desire to close the prison at West Point graduation ceremony. Despite the president's continued commitment to its closure, Americans' views have not changed much in the four times Gallup has asked them about this issue. 
   
   Republicans remain more likely than Democrats to oppose closing the detention facility, although the majority of Democrats remain opposed. 
   
   A consistent minority of Republicans have supported closing the prison since 2007, when 16% felt the prison should be closed. Republicans were even less likely to support the prison's closure by 2009, as Obama continued his pledge to close the facility, reaching its lowest at 8% in November of that year. 
   
   Like Republicans, independents' support for closing the prison has fallen since 2007, from 37% in 2007 to 28% by November 2009. 
   
   As of this year, Democrats have shown their lowest support for closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay. Currently, 41% support the idea, while 54% oppose it. Previously, Democrats were split in their views, sometimes differing by as little as two percentage points. 
   
   Bottom Line 
   
   Though President Obama has long backed plans to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, he did not have the support of Americans on the issue when taking office in 2009. Today, he still does not have their support, even among those in his own party. 
   
   According to a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, 17 inmates from the detention facility have been moved out in the past 13 months, including the five Taliban officials who were recently swapped for Bergdahl. This leaves 149 remaining detainees at the facility, and the White House is currently exploring plans to transfer more of them on a case-by-case basis. 
   
   Though public opinion on what to do with the facility has been consistent, it could change as prisoner numbers dwindle. Further, as more information regarding the Bergdahl case emerges -- including whether the recently freed Taliban detainees re-emerge as terror threats to the U.S. -- ideas about what to do with Guantanamo Bay could shift. ||||| The White House is drafting options that would allow President Barack Obama to close the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, by overriding a congressional ban on bringing detainees to the U.S., senior administration officials said. 
   
   Such a move would be the latest and potentially most dramatic use of executive power by the president in his second term. It would likely provoke a sharp reaction from lawmakers, who have...
target: – President Obama is considering overriding a congressional ban on bringing Guantanamo prisoners to the US in an effort to close the Cuban prison, the Wall Street Journal reports. Lawmakers are strongly against the move, which "would ignite a political firestorm, even if it's the best resolution for the Guantanamo problem," a law professor explains. You might recall that a previous use of executive power could soon see the president sued. But White House officials say Obama is "unwavering in his commitment" to move Gitmo's 149 inmates and close the prison's doors, something the president apparently sees as key to his legacy. What will Obama do? Well, he has two options, the Journal points out. One: He vetoes the National Defense Authorization Act, which includes the ban on transferring detainees to the US, after the midterm elections. Two: He signs the bill but argues the ban infringes on his powers as commander in chief. While officials won't say to which US facilities the prisoners would shift—the Journal reports Charleston's military brig seems likely—Obama will likely lessen the blow by moving some of the 79 detainees cleared for transfer to places outside the US; Estonia, for example, has already agreed to accept one prisoner, and other European countries are willing. That isn't likely to please many, however. The most recent Gallup poll on the issue finds 66% of Americans want Guantanamo to stay open.