Posted on 02/20/2006 3:14:17 PM PST by Stellar Dendrite
The federal bureaucracy has made a strategic mistake that threatens to cost the President dearly. The question is not whether the ill-advised decision taken last week by the secretive Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (known by its acronym, CFIUS, pronounced syphius) will be undone. Rather, the question is: By whom -- and at what political cost to Mr. Bush?
In the latest of a series of approvals of questionable foreign takeovers of American interests, CFIUS has given the green light to a company owned by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to acquire contracts to manage port facilities in New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Miami and New Orleans. The company, Dubai Ports World, would do so by purchasing a British concern, Peninsula and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (“P and O”).
Experts have long identified America’s sea ports as weak links in the chain of our homeland security. With their proximity to major U.S. population centers, expensive infrastructure vital to the regional and, in many cases, national economy and their throughput of large quantities of poorly monitored cargo, they are prime targets for terror.
As a result, a case can be made that it is a mistake to have foreign entities responsible for any aspect of such ports, including the management of their docks, stevedore operations and terminals. After all, that duty affords abundant opportunities to insinuate personnel and/or shipping containers that can pose a threat to this country. Even though the company in question may not be directly responsible for port security, at least some of their employees have to be read in on the relevant plans, potentially compromising the latter irreparably.
At least the previous foreign contractors were from Britain, a country that was on our side before September 11, 2001. The same cannot be said of the United Arab Emirates, whose territory was used for most of the planning and financing of the 9/11 attacks. While the UAE’s government is currently depicted as a friend and ally in the so-called war on terror, its country remains awash with Islamofascist recruiters and adherents – people all too willing to exploit any new opportunity to do us harm.
Since a column raising an alarm about CFIUS’ decision appeared in this space last week, three new factors have come to light that compound the strategic folly of the UAE deal:
O First, in addition to the six affected ports mentioned above, two others would also have part of their operations managed by DP World – on behalf of none other than the U.S. Army. Under a newly extended contract, the owner of P and O will manage the movement of heavy armor, helicopters and other military materiel through the Texas seaports of Beaumont and Corpus Christie. How much would our enemies like to be able to sabotage such shipments?
O Second, while advocates of the stealthy CFIUS decision-making process point to the involvement of the Defense Department in its DP World decision, it is unclear at what level this bizarre proposition was reviewed in the Pentagon. Many top jobs remain unfilled by presidential appointees. Past experience suggests the job may have fallen to lower-level career bureaucrats who give priority to maintaining good relations with their foreign “clients,” like the UAE.
O Then, there is the matter of financing the DP World takeover of Peninsula and Oriental. The UAE evidently intends to raise nearly all of the $6.8 billion price for P and O on international capital markets. It must be asked: Who will the foreign investors be, and might they have malign intentions towards the U.S.? If American sources of capital are being sought, will the possible danger this transaction may create for this country be properly disclosed? For that matter, will the underwriters, Barclays and Deutchebank, reveal to prospective funders the real risk that the deal will ultimately fall through?
In fact, that seems virtually certain now that talk radio, the blogosphere and the public have become aware of – and white hot about – this transaction. Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle and of Capitol Hill have made known their determination to prevent the transfer of control of U.S. ports to the UAE. In particular, Democrats like Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer have been quick to seize on this issue as an opportunity to burnish their national security credentials at the expense of President Bush and his party.
So, the question recurs: How long will it take before Mr. Bush cuts his losses? This could be accomplished in one of three ways: He could reverse the decision himself (perhaps by directing CFIUS to reconsider its initial recommendation). He could encourage and sign into law legislation barring foreign ownership or management of U.S. port facilities (akin to the rules governing other critical infrastructure). Or he could quietly encourage the UAE to do as Communist China did last year with respect to the Unocal purchase – withdraw the offer itself, sparing the country in question (and its friends here) the embarrassment of having its behavior carefully scrutinized and its offer spurned in a high-profile way.
Call it a Harriet Meirs moment. Politics being the art of the possible, it is time to recognize that the Dubai Ports World deal is neither strategically sensible nor politically doable. It is time to pull the plug, and to reform the secretive interagency CFIUS process that allowed this fiasco in the first place.
I'm way ahead of you.
I believe it is because Al-Qaeda is incompetent.
They had hundreds of millions of dollars, maybe even billions at there disposal, and hundreds of people willing to die in the attacks. No escape plans necesary - and countries to help them out.
Also they went at us to early.
9-11 shouldn't have happened until years later when many cells could have been set up in this country for future attacks.
Al Qaeda was up against a clueless CIA,FBI,and the clueless President Bush, and us clueless Americans. There was no need to worry about being detected.
Also Qaeda is clueless as to how to hit us where it will really get our attention. I am not about to make any suggestions either.
Incompetence facing off against incompetence. We will just have to face up to the facts of life more quickly. - tom
Brit covered the deal at his discussion table. It was good except that Bill Krystal had no idea what was going on & said so. At least he was honest.
If Congress were to cancel the contracts DPWorld has the right to seek restitution for breach of contract. Of course Congress could also put the restitution in the contract canceling bill and that could be billions.
"They will get the approval on March 2nd from a British court."
It's not quite March yet. And, I do believe that they're out of their jurisdiction as far as internal United States approval requirements are concerned. The British court may approve the sale, but the former P & O will end up losing the contract, which severely undercuts any rationale for approving the acquisition.
What part of national security trumps all do you not understand? Besides who say congress just can't write a law tha says the contract is null and void with no reprocussions until it is approved?
Miers was a fleabite problem compared to this.
Whatever would we do without Brit?
Thanks for the good info.
Glad it's better.
This issue could blow what crediblity GW has left on national security.
Oh, wow. The threat of lawyers litigating US national security interests in US courts! How vewy, vewy fwightening!
Btw, there was no namecalling, just the truth posted. At least you knew who I was referring to.
If Congress didn't enter a contract, they can't breach it.
Actually it is frightening, who in their right mind would sign a port contract when it could be shot down willynilly if graft is not paid to a politician or a politicians hyperbole.
Not any real ones.
You know, your use of such terms is particularly irritating. I suppose I could go anead and use the term "perpetual Bush-hating nose-pickers" but I somehow don't think it promotes my side of the argument.
Good as long as it is shot down.
You might gain a few.
Congress could cancel it and like I said on March 2nd DPWorld will take over P&O's infrastructure and assets and those assets are at some US ports. DPWorld could pack up or mothball the assets if they wanted to or wait for a Congressional buyout.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.