Posted on 03/10/2006 8:26:48 AM PST by indcons
President Bush said Friday he was troubled by the political storm that forced the reversal of a deal allowing a company in Dubai to take over take over operations of six American ports, saying it sent a bad message to U.S. allies in the Middle East.
Bush said the United States needs moderate allies in the Arab world, like the United Arab Emirates, to win the global war on terrorism.
The president said he had been satisfied that security would be sound at the ports if the Dubai deal had taken effect. "Nevertheless, Congress was still very much opposed to it," Bush said. He made his remarks to a conference of the National Newspaper Association, which represents owners, publishers and editors of community newspapers.
"I'm concerned about a broader message this issue could send to our friends and allies around the world, particularly in the Middle East," the president said. "In order to win the war on terror we have got to strengthen our friendships and relationships with moderate Arab countries in the Middle East."
"UAE is a committed ally in the war on terror," Bush added. "They are a key partner for our military in a critical region, and outside of our own country, Dubai services more of our military, military ships, than any country in the world.
"They're sharing intelligence so we can hunt down the terrorists," Bush added. "They helped us shut down a world wide proliferation network run by A.Q. Khan" — the Pakistani scientist who sold nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya, he said.
"UAE is a valued and strategic partner," he said. "I'm committed to strengthening our relationship with the UAE."
After a storm of protest in the Republican-controlled Congress, DP World announced Thursday that it would transfer six U.S. port operations to a U.S. entity. The moved spared Bush from a veto showdown with GOP lawmakers. Yet the larger issue highlighted by the DP world controversy — U.S. port security — shows no signs of going away.
"The problem of the political moment has passed, but the problem of adequate port security still looms large," Sen. Lindsey Graham (news, bio, voting record), R-S.C., said.
Republicans and Democrats alike welcomed DP World's decision to give up its aspirations to manage significant operations at the six ports, but they warned that the move doesn't negate the urgent need for broad legislation aimed at protecting America's ports.
"I'm sure that the decision by DP World was a difficult decision to hand over port operations that they had purchased from another company," Bush said.
"There are gaping holes in cargo and port security that need to be plugged," Sen. Patty Murray (news, bio, voting record), D-Wash., said.
The Bush administration also announced Friday that free trade talks with the United Arab Emirates were being postponed.
The talks, which were supposed to begin Monday, were postponed because both sides need more time to prepare, according to an announcement from the office of U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman (news, bio, voting record). USTR spokeswoman Neena Moorjani refused to say whether the postponement was related to the controversy over the port operations.
Legislation on the issue has piled up in both the House and the Senate in the weeks since the flap over DP World erupted and divided Bush from the Republican-led Congress.
Before the United Arab Emirates-based company's announcement, the House and Senate appeared all but certain to block DP World's U.S. plan despite Bush's veto threats — a message that GOP congressional leaders delivered personally to the White House.
Facing a disapproving public in an election year, a House committee overwhelmingly voted against the plan Wednesday. And House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., warned the president in a private meeting Thursday that the Senate inevitably would follow suit.
Within hours, Sen. John Warner (news, bio, voting record), R-Va., one of the few members of Congress to back the administration's position on the issue, went to the Senate floor to read a statement from the company.
"DP World will transfer fully the U.S. operations ... to a United States entity," H. Edward Bilkey, the company's top executive, said in the statement. It was unclear which American business might get the port operations.
The White House expressed satisfaction with the company's decision.
"It does provide a way forward and resolve the matter," said Scott McClellan, the White House press secretary "We have a strong relationship with the UAE and a good partnership in the global war on terrorism, and I think their decision reflects the importance of our broader relationship."
The company's decision gives the president an out. He now doesn't have to back down from his staunch support of the company or further divide his party on a terrorism-related issue with a veto.
It was unclear how the company would manage its planned divestiture, and Bilkey's statement said its announcement was "based on an understanding that DP World will not suffer economic loss."
"This should make the issue go away," Frist said.
Even critics of the deal expressed cautious optimism that DP World's move would quell the controversy surrounding that company's plan to take over some U.S. terminal leases held by the London-based company it was purchasing.
"The devil is in the details," Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said, echoing sentiments expressed by other lawmakers.
DP World on Thursday finalized its $6.8 billion purchase of Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the British company that through a U.S. subsidiary runs important port operations in New York, New Jersey, Baltimore, New Orleans, Miami and Philadelphia. It also plays a lesser role in dockside activities at 16 other American ports.
The plan was disclosed last month, setting off a political firestorm in the United States even though the company's U.S. operations were only a small part of the global transaction.
Republicans were furious that they learned of it from news reports instead of from the Bush administration. They cited concerns over a company run by a foreign government overseeing operations at U.S. ports already deemed vulnerable to terrorist attacks.
Democrats also pledged to halt the takeover and clamored for a vote in the Senate. They sought political advantage from the issue by trying to narrow a polling gap with the GOP on issues of national security.
Senate Republicans initially tried to fend off a vote, and the administration agreed to a 45-day review of the transaction. That strategy collapsed Wednesday with the 62-2 vote in the House Appropriations Committee to thwart the sale.
And the British government is doing what they can to kill, maim, arrest and ferret out such terrorists. However, Dubai was a major conduit of funds for the 9/11 plot and to this day the UAE supports Hamas.
"The UAE actively supports Hamas. "
So does Sweden. They just sent millions to the new government there. So do many other countries friendly to the US. Like it or not, Hamas runs the Palistinian Authority, a territory recognized by the UN. UAE is not alone in this support. Support for the political wing of Hamas was not sufficient reason to block this deal.
You have it exactly right.
The Bush Administration has lousy PR talent and that is unfortunately compounded by a tin ear for public sentiment.
This is another example of the lack of leadership at the helm.
Bush said the United States needs moderate allies in the Arab world, like the United Arab Emirates, to win the global war on terrorism.
The UAE is sending plenty of its own bad messages. It needs to clean up it's act and quit whining.
Uh the hypocrisy is from you, DPWorld made a legitimate bid for P&O.
Bush had nothing to do with this, but what the hey you push the big lie, like chuckie schumer.
Sanity did prevail, in the United Arab Emerites. They saw how important the war on terror was. They saw how important their relationship with the United States was. They valued that relationship, they want to defeat terroristm.
So they sanely decided that the best thing to do with the crazies in washington was to give in for the good of the countries.
Sad that the UAE, who the opponents are STILL calling supporters of terrorists right here in this very thread, acted in saner and better way than our own elected representatives.
I am proud today of John Warner, who was always on the right side of this deal, and George Allen, who was willing to hear all the facts before passing judgment. Both of my senators resisted the rush to judgment.
He probably should have been out giving these explanations from the start. Does he ever try to talk to the American people outside of a military base or private company/association?
Name some hypocrisy. As far as naivete, you may be right. They obviously expected most Americans wouldn't be so stupid as to be spoon-fed by Harry Reid and the Democrats. They were wrong.
In the end the WH has nobody to blame but themselves for the damage this has caused.
I guess the President learned ABSOLUTELY NOTHING from the Harriet Miers fiasco.
Expecting your President who was re-elected based on a set of articulated and well defined principles to govern by those principles isn't hard.
If the Bush Doctrine amounts to whatever Bush's latest prouncement is, that won't do.
So Hamas says. I trust them. :-)
On the other hand, Hamas did just win the election in Palestine, so they are the "legitimate" governing party of that failed disaster of a state.
I don't support them though, I merely recognize the reality.
do you have anything to back up your claim?
any kind of documentation or anything?
The hypocrisy of Congress on this deal makes me want to puke. When the likes of Schummer and Pelosi, who have never given a rat's posterior about US security and the war on terror, now puff with indignation about the security threat this transaction portends it's nauseating. This is all about Bush bashing. If Bush had opposed this deal citing security concerns these same liberals would be bashing him for being racist and not seeking to make friends with the Arab nations.
We have one ally in the middle east - that is Israel. This would be something that we would be wise to remember. The degree to which the rest of them hate us varies, but they do hate us.
Perhaps you'd be better off worrying about what we'll do if/when our strategic UAE military bases are shut down. Then there's that pesky oil thing.
what whining? They have a legitmate complaint against chuckie schumer and the MSM.
They made a legitimate offer to take over P&O's business operations and the P&O shareholders accepted their offer.
How evil of them.
They weren't going to be in charge of security but Hillary and Chuckie thank you for repeating the lies.
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