America's moral leadership has never faded

People keep talking about America's "moral leadership" in reference to President Obama's executive order to close Gitmo. By shutting down this detention facility outside of the United States, many liberals like Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) are claiming America being moral again:

In a season of transformational changes, these are among the most meaningful, because they send a powerful message that America's struggle against terrorism will once against honor some of the most cherished ideals of our republic: respect for the rule of law, individual rights, and America's moral leadership.

He writes about America as if it's a communist state devoid of laws and human rights. The fact that these suspected terrorists are detained in a comfortable military facility in sunny weather reading their Qurans already shows America's moral leadership. We could've shipped them off to some God-forsaken remote camp where they never see the light of day and wake up every morning wondering if they'd live through the night. That's how some countries treat their enemies, Sen. Kerry.

I have seen televised footages of Gitmo. Barbed wires surrounding the perimeter, of course, and steel cages throughout. Prison guards holding their rifles standing at the gates. I have noticed the prisoners dressed in their own seemingly comfortable attire and not some rag. They walk about, some are kicking a ball, some are just sitting, catching some rays. I dare say that their living condition may even surpass that of some prisons on U.S. soil.

The prisoner abuse uncovered at Abu Ghraib was shameful and tarnished our image. But that was promptly addressed by the Bush administration from the top down. Those who were responsible answered to the law and received punishment. The U.S. did not just let that slide. What greater demonstration of respecting the rule of law and human rights?

America, to me, has never lost its moral leadership. People like Sen. Kerry are focusing on the wrong side of the coin.