Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued the following statement today following President Obama’s counterterrorism speech at the National Defense University:

“I commend President Obama for today’s candid and thoughtful assessment of our counterterrorism strategy. Since 9/11 our country has grappled with complicated national security issues, and I applaud the president for tackling them head on. I appreciate his efforts to engage Congress to bring about increased transparency and improvements to the way we fight terrorists at home and abroad.

“On Guantanamo, I support the president’s renewed effort to close the facility. Guantanamo is a stain on our country’s reputation and a recruitment tool for terrorists. It is my belief that resuming transfers of those Yemeni detainees who do not pose a threat to the United States, and the appointment of senior officials at the State and Defense Departments to vet and implement these transfers is an important step to close Guantanamo. I look forward to working with the administration to accomplish this goal.”