President to Plead Ignorance
22 February 2006 8:53 am by Taylor Marsh
President to Plead Ignorance
MSNBC Breaking News – White House: Bush didn't know
of port deal until it was done. Details soon. –
Now they're saying President Bush didn't know about the port deal until it was
over? That was the content of the email blast. I can't wait to hear about those
“details.”
Somebody in the White House must have finally awoken to the smoldering smells of
citizens passions afire.
Or maybe they saw what Democrats actually look like when a national security
topic hits their radar on full.
As for the Democrats, we suppose this is
a two-fer: They have a rare opportunity to get to the right of the GOP on national
security, and they can play to their union, anti-foreign investment base as
well. At a news conference in front of New York harbor, Senator Chuck Schumer
said allowing the Arab company to manage ports “is a homeland security
accident waiting to happen.” Hillary Clinton is also along for this political
ride.
Ports
of Politics
How to sound like a hawk without being one
Of course, we don't expect the Wall Street Journal to understand
the fury. But today's utterly tone deaf editorial certainly speaks to the values
Paul Gigot and his bunch cherish. How does anyone know the White House hasn't
done its due diligence? They all must have been in Cannes when Katrina hit.
Then there are statements like this from President I didn't
know about the port deal until it was done Bush.
“I want those who are questioning
it to step up and explain why all of a sudden a Middle Eastern company is
held to a different standard than a [British] company,” Bush told reporters.
Bush
Threatens Veto Against Bid To Stop Port Deal
He's kidding, right?
This is Terror Guy talking?
Oh, but by the way, our president didn't know of the port deal
until it was done.
Are they trying to pave a presidential out? Are they trying to
reaffirm his my
aides made me do it mantra? Or Does President Ignorant actually believe
that not knowing about opening our ports to an Arab country that hides Islamist
money isn't a problem?
How about just following
the law?
The law, however, was amended in 1993.
That amendment makes the 45-day investigation mandatory in cases like the
Dubai World Ports transfer. From the CFIUS
website:Amendments. Section 837(a) of the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993, called the “Byrd Amendment,”
amended Section 721 of the Defense Production Act (the “Exon-Florio provision”).
It requires an investigation in cases where:o the acquirer is controlled by or acting on behalf
of a foreign government; ando the acquisition “could result in control of
a person engaged in interstate commerce in the U.S. that could affect the
national security of the U.S.”
This is the story of how to wake up the nationalistic fervor of a country that
feels neglected, used and abused by Bush.
I'm not talking about the well coiffed, portfolio puffed, self contained Wall Street crowd, but
the middle America, say it proud and loud crowd, who believe any Arab country
who has a history of aiding and abetting our enemy doesn't get to manage our
ports. But it doesn't just apply to Arabs. I don't want the Chinese handling
our ports. I'd even want a German company to be vetted with the 45-day investigation
the law requires. Let's remember, Germany is where the terrorists incubated
their insanity. British companies need to be vetted too. Follow
the law. No one, friendly or suspect, gets to go around a law put in place to
make us safe.
Of course, we can't expect Terror Guy and Deadeye to understand the rule of law, now can we?
The Bush administration has followed a disturbing pattern
in its approach to the war on terror. It has been perpetually willing to sacrifice
individual rights in favor of security. But it has been loath to do the same
thing when it comes to business interests. It has not imposed reasonable safety
requirements on chemical plants, one of the nation's greatest points of vulnerability,
or on the transport of toxic materials. The ports deal is another decision
that has made the corporations involved happy, and has made ordinary Americans
worry about whether they are being adequately protected. New
York Times
Or maybe we should all just realize that the Wall Street Journal editorial
page will always come to the aid of protecting the ca$h.
