President Obama is expected to sign a sweeping military spending bill, even though it restricts prisoner transfers from Guantánamo. The National Defense Authorization Act passed by the Senate Tuesday extends a ban on moving Guantánamo prisoners to the United States and sets new restrictions on transfers to other countries, including Libya, Syria, Yemen and Somalia. White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said Obama will likely sign the measure anyway.

Josh Earnest: “Our view of those specific provisions have not changed. And what the president does believe, though, is that there are a number of provisions in the NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) that are important to running and protecting the country. And so that’s why I would expect that you would see the president sign the NDAA when it comes to his desk, whenever it comes to his desk. But that certainly does not reflect a change in our position or the intensity of our position about the need to close the prison at Guantánamo Bay and the need for Congress to actually cooperate with us in doing so.”

This week, the Obama administration is expected to unveil its long-awaited plan to close Guantánamo.