Obama: Striking A Balance at Guantanamo Is Not Easy

President Obama strode into a news conference before the White House press corps Wednesday after navigating a surprisingly successful lame duck congressional session for the administration, but there are still some issues that have proven elusive for Mr. Obama, among them his goal of closing the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

"Obviously we haven't gotten it closed," said the President.

Fox News reported Tuesday night the Obama administration is drafting an executive order that would call for a regular review process for detainees currently under indefinite detention at Guantanamo.

He would not specifically comment on a review that he hadn't seen yet.

President Obama said his administration wrestling with tough questions surrounding detainees currently under indefinite detention at Guantanamo, "Are there ways for us to make sure these folks have lawyers, to make sure that these folks have the opportunity to challenge their detention, but at the same time, making sure that we are not simply releasing folks who could do us grievous harm and have shown a capacity and willingness to engage in brutal attacks in the past?"

The president initially had pledged to close the prison his first year in office.

White House officials, including President Obama himself, have long asserted that Guantanamo is a powerful recruitment tool for Al Qaeda and that they are committed to closing the prison, they just have not yet found a way to actually accomplish that.

"Striking this balance between our security and making sure that we are consistent with our values and our Constitution is not an easy task," said Obama.