Congress votes to ban transfer of Guantanamo detainees to US
By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press
Nov 10, 2015 11:08 AM CST
In this Nov. 5, 2015, photo, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., speaks about the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Senate is poised to pass a bill on Nov. 10, that bans moving Guantanamo Bay detainees to the United States, something Barack Obama has been...   (Associated Press)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress has passed a $607 billion defense bill that bans moving Guantanamo Bay detainees to the United States — something Barack Obama has been trying to do since he was sworn in as president.

The Senate's vote of 91 to 3 gave final legislative approval to the measure. The House has already passed it with a veto-proof majority, 370-58.

Obama does not like the Guantanamo provisions. But so far, the White House has not threatened to veto the bill.

The legislation has become a lightning rod for debate over whether the president needs congressional approval to move some of the remaining 112 detainees from the U.S. detention center in Cuba to the United States, or if he could do it with an executive order.