Quinn said that seems to be the mood of Congress after the House Armed Services Committee earlier this week unanimously approved a 2011 national defense authorization bill that prohibits using money to build or modify facilities in the United States for Guantanamo detainees.
"I think it's less likely given the Congress with respect to the issue of detainees, but separate and distinct from that there's a need for a federal prison," Quinn told reporters.
Quinn has already agreed to sell the mostly unused Thomson Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison located about 150 miles west of Chicago. But the prospect of moving about 100 detainees there had sparked criticism from some who feared it would make Illinois a terrorist target.
The Justice Department indicated in March it still wanted to buy the prison and use it to house federal inmates even if detainees weren't sent there. The White House says the House committee's action won't impact money for the Justice Department's to buy the prison.
"There is a significant need for another federal prison," said Rich Carter, a spokesman for Republican Rep. Don Manzullo, whose district includes Thomson. Manzullo supports turning Thomson into a federal prison but opposes holding detainees there.
Obama had been looking for a new place to hold detainees because he promised during the campaign to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba.
Quinn said he expects to put together a deal soon for the prison. "I'm optimistic we can get that done," he said.
