The coast guard, customs, and homeland security control the ports.
The cargo is inspected by federal agents first. All one hundred percent is inspected. Now only 5 percent is given further inspection when a red flag is raised during the first inspection.
This is a non story.
In 15,000 applications there has been one rejection.
We control the security and the procedures.
We control the security of the ports. This story is all about lies. But don't expect the asleep at the switch white house to get in front of this story.
Scott McClellan and the white house press team are brain dead. They never get the facts out.
UK uses this same company for their ports. There security first inspects it like it does here too.
No one probably thought twice about this because they don't control the security of the ports.
By law they couldn't have done anything anyway. The U.S has worked with this company for years. The law states there has to be something wrong with the company or they would have had to have lied.
If you want to blame someone blame the british company shareholders for noting taking the singapore offer instead of the dubai offer. Bush didn't bring this on the shareholders did. In 15,000 applications only one has been rejected under this group. Also blame the american companies for not offering a bid.
Gore wants to increase saudi visas but that gets no press.
Bush needs to first thing monday go on the offense, the coast guard and homeland security are still in charge of the ports.
Schumer waited until after the deal was done by the shareholders to make a fuss about it. He didn't care about stopping it. It was known for weeks before they were going to get the deal.
The public will believe the lies that our ports will be controled by foreigners
They are controlled by the coast guard, homeland security, and customs.
Maritime security experts will tell you this is not an issue in security. We need better technology for the inspections which happen first by the customs at the ports.
"The cargo is inspected by federal agents first. All one hundred percent is inspected..."
That's news to me. Where did you get that figure.
Whose staff are you on?
sorry, but only between 5-15% of the shipments are checked. They are a door-to-door shipment company. Alot can happen from door to door. A rogue employee working with terrorists would have access in our ports legally, and can work from the inside. As I watch TV and the violent hatred that Muslums have for Americans, my choice is to not give them any place in a vulnerable area. They have not proven to be consistent.
Also, The CFIUS Committee information is confidential. The members (at this time are the Bush Administration appointed persons) receive the requests and do not advise congress. They feel if congress got involved then it would hold up the process, plus there is confidential information concerning the clients that the parties do not want to share. Congress probably wasn't not informed. This story was probably picked up by someone in the financial sector who read about the buy out.
P&O, possibly to be DPW would be in charge of hiring their security personnel.
Check out the following and tell me if you feel any safer:
www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/RL31733.pdf
(CRS Report for congress on Port & Maritime Security) some interesting scenarios we all fear in this one.
An interagency Approach to US Port Security, (by an advisor to our security agencies)
http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/2005/Feb/henriksonfeb05.asp
Too bad, P&O should have been advised that selling its assets to Arabs would lose it one of its big contracts. Its that simple. I live here, between NY & NJ ports and I'm not comfortable with the idea of port security being run by Arab Muslims, I don't care if they hire the entire staff in Kansas, Mexico, or the dark side of the moon.