False claim that Gitmo remaining open proves Biden isn't really president | Fact check

The claim: Biden can’t give an executive order to close Guantanamo Bay because he’s not the president

WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 02: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks from the Roosevelt Room of the White House on May 02, 2024 in Washington, DC. Biden spoke about recent protests across the United States on college campuses. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 776141075 ORIG FILE ID: 2151138804

A May 5 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows a flight tracking map of an airplane purportedly heading to the U.S. from the Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp in Cuba.

“Special Forces coming back from the Spa better known as Gitmo,” the post reads. “The place ‘Biden’ campaigned he would close but can’t because he’s not President by LAW.”

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“Executive Order 13823 was an Order that revoked Obama’s EO to close Gitmo. If (commander in chief) Trump can revoke an order, how come ‘Biden’ can’t do the same?” the post continues.

The post was shared more than 100 times in two days. Other versions of the claim circulated on Facebook as well.

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Our rating: False

There’s ample evidence showing that Joe Biden is president. Although he has not signed an executive order to shut down the detention center, Biden has signed more than 100 other orders during his presidency.

Biden has signed more than 100 executive orders as of May

The Facebook post references Executive Order 13823, signed by former President Donald Trump in 2018. Trump ordered the detention center, which has a history of inhumane treatment of detainees, to remain open.

The post is correct that Biden campaigned in 2020 on a promise to shut down the detention center, which has not happened. Just days after former President Barack Obama took office in 2009, he signed an executive order to have the prison shut down within a year. That plan also failed due to what Obama said was a lack of congressional support.

But the fact that it hasn’t closed since Biden took office doesn’t mean he’s not president.

During his time in office, Biden has signed 138 executive orders as of May 6, according to Ballotpedia, none related to shutting down the detention center. He has conducted all manner of actions in keeping with his role, including representing the country internationally, commanding the military and signing bills into law.

Biden won the presidential election in November 2020 with 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232. The swearing-in ceremony at the Jan. 20, 2021, inauguration marked the transfer of power between the Trump and Biden administrations.

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A total of about 780 detainees have been held at the Guantanamo Bay facility since it opened in 2002, The New York Times reported. About 30 remain.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: False claim that Gitmo remaining open proves Biden isn’t really president | Fact check