Should U.S. Allow Foreign Government Management Of U.S. Ports?
Surprising even fellow Republicans, President Bush defends plans by a foreign company owned by the United Arab Emirates to manage operations at six large U.S. ports.
"President Bush vowed Tuesday to veto any legislation that would block a state-owned Arab company from managing the operations at six large U.S. seaports, setting up a major confrontation between the White House and its usually steadfast Republican allies in Congress.
Under the controversial transaction, Dubai Ports World, a business owned by the United Arab Emirates, would operate ports in New York; Newark, N.J.; Philadelphia; Baltimore; Miami; and New Orleans. A British company had been in charge of the ports, but it was recently purchased by the Arab company. The sale is expected to be finalized in March.
...Legislators on both sides of the political aisle have questioned whether the deal would compromise security at the ports, with some noting links that the Sept. 11 terrorists had to the United Arab Emirates."
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This is crazy.
I find it hard to believe that this is even an issue. Should we allow an Arab Country to manage several of the top-20 US ports? Will all due respect to our friends in the U.A.R., Hell No!
This is not an issue of racial profiling. It is an issue of common sense and national security. The statements that President Bush "knew nothing about it" until after the fact suggest either duplicity or gross incompetence, or both. I generally support the President on issues related to terrorism, but this back door deal stinks badly.
Don't these people realize that a single WMD (real or imagined) in one of the shipping containers passing through these ports could shut down the east coast economy? We're talking tens of billions of dollars, minimum. Rather than increase border security, the President wants to farm it out to foreign interests.