Remember Bush wanted to give Dubai our ports..

.. Did he sneak that through for his Arab friends?

 

Thankfully Congress has one or two members with a spine.

 

Once again this is incorrect information. Bush did not give Dubai our ports.

London-based Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. had the contract to manage six US ports, including New York and Baltimore, that they contracted from local port authorities. They sold this contract to Dubai Ports World, a company based in Dubai. Congress made a big stink about security, so Dubai Ports World subsequently sold the management contracts to a US firm I believe, but I can't recall the name of the company. No ports were ever "given" to anyone. And the federal government and Bush were not involved until Congress stepped in over the objection of the local port authorities who controlled the contracting of port operations.

 

Cloudsweeper:

"No ports were ever "given" to anyone. And the federal government and Bush were not involved until Congress stepped in over the objection of the local port authorities who controlled the contracting of port operations."

Actually, Bush did promote the transaction and approve the Dubai company for the operation.

I do believe that Danr did not mean it literally, "to give" away the ports.
Just the security aspect.
Seems kinda like having the fox watch the hen house.

 

Bush favored the transaction, but it was not his to "approve" in any legal or jurisdictional sense of the word. Ports are not under the jurisdiction of the federal government. For example, the New York Port Authority had sole juridiction over the operation of the port of NYC, and in the past they could contract with anyone they wanted to run the ports, international airports, etc. in the area as they saw fit. The whole "security" issue just provided the chance for the federal government to grab control of another right that formerly belonged to state and local authorities under the banner of "Homeland Security." I'm not saying I favored the Dubai deal. That's just the way it is.

 

Another one of Danr's RED HERRINGS!

 

I was hoping for a follow link to an article or something because it was the general suspicion that they would wait a year or so and try again in a more secretive way.

 

old dan:
I really liked that smiley!

 

Who let the village idiot out of the basement?