All of these people -- from Chuck Schumer to Peter King to the chairman of the Port Authority of NY/NJ to everyone else who has come out and expressed public "concern" about the deal -- are simply covering their @sses and engaging in this political posturing because of all the gross distortions that have been put out there in all of these stupid articles and editorials.
Ironically, the chairman of the Port Authority of NY/NJ has more power here than anyone else. If he simply stood up tomorrow and publicly announced that he would make every attempt to cancel the P&O leases at Port Newark/Elizabeth and eliminate all berthing rights for P&O ships at all of the New York and New Jersey facilities, this deal would collapse immediately. There's no way in hell this UAE-owned company would pay $6.8 billion for P&O if they no longer have access to the largest port facility on the eastern seabord of the United States (in the world's largest consumer market).
DP World said it won approval from a secretive U.S. government panel that considers security risks of foreign companies buying or investing in American industry.
Critics of the proposed purchase said a port operator complicit in smuggling or terrorism could manipulate manifests and other records to frustrate Homeland Security's already limited scrutiny of shipping containers and slip contraband past U.S. Customs inspectors.
"When you have a foreign government involved, you are injecting foreign national interests," Kreitzer said. "A country that may be a friend of ours today may not be on the same side tomorrow. You don't know in advance what the politics of that country will be in the future."
Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the FBI has said the money for the strikes was transferred to the hijackers primarily through the UAE's banking system, and much of the operational planning for the attacks took place inside the UAE.
Many of the hijackers traveled to the U.S. through the UAE. Also, the hijacker who steered United Airlines flight into the World Trade Center's south tower, Marwan al-Shehhi, was born in the UAE.
After the attacks, U.S. Treasury Department officials complained about a lack of cooperation by the UAE and other Arab countries trying to track Osama bin Laden's bank accounts.
Saturday February 11, 9:41 am ET
By Ted Bridis, Associated Press Writer
Company From United Arab Emirates Poised to Oversee Six
American Ports Due to Sale