It was built to solidify US naval power projection into the Caribbean and Gulf back in 1898. The detention camp was placed there in 2002 partially to avoid the

It was built to solidify US naval power projection into the Caribbean and Gulf back in 1898. The detention camp was placed there in 2002 partially to avoid the legal concerns and partially out of convenience (there's only a handful of places outside the US mainland they could have placed it, and Cuba is the only one where they don't care what the host nation says). Obama's efforts to close it, which did come up in debates (and came back in 2016) were basically rebuffed by Congress. Not because they want to keep Gitmo open, but because nobody wants the prisoners moved into their constituency's backyard.