"We have already shown that the people of Illinois and of America can handle this assignment"

Just hours before Federal authorities evaluate the Thomson Correctional Center, Governor Pat Quinn is showing support for it someday housing terror suspects.

" This is an economic opportunity that comes once in a lifetime for the people of Illinois" said Quinn

Quinn thinks opening the prison to around 100 Gitmo detainees will create three-thousand jobs. Congressman Don Manzullo says only about a couple hundred of those would be local.

" The applicants in Thomson will apply online and become entered in a pool of about 70 thousand people who have already qualified to work for the bureau of prisons." said Manzullo

Since the maximum security prison never fully opened, the village is stuck paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for unneeded services. Since so many families left town, Thomson was forced to shut down a school.

" People built a houses and now there are a few houses up for sale because they had to move to find another job." said Thomson Village President, Jerry Hebeler

While most everyone agrees on the positive economic impact many are worried the possibility of 200 terrorists residing in a town of 600 could put our state at a higher risk than unemployment numbers.