The incredible port debacle has the Bush administration on its heels and in a real bind from all sides.

Most American's cannot conceive of a company from the United Arab Emirate taking over six U.S. shipping ports due to their connections to 9/11. But that is exactly the idea coming from the White House during a time of war that was started by Arab terrorists.

However, the port deal is being handled as a move to show trust in the Arab world and president Bush feels it just wouldn't be fair to single out a supposed ally in the war on terror from any other. In other words he doesn't want to show disrespect to our 'friends.'

President Bush says the company Dubai Ports World has been screened well by the government. The New York Daily News reported that the UAE-owned company, has at least two ties to the White House.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a country roughly the size of Maine, located between Saudi Arabia and Oman. As the name implies, the UAE consists of several emirates or provinces.

This transaction has been vetted at the highest levels," former Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge told Fox News on Tuesday.

The U.A.E. will not "own" the ports, Ridge emphasized. Security for those state-owned ports will continue to be handled by the Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection, and even the union laborers who work the docks. He also said security concerns exist regardless of who operates the ports.

Ridge also noted that Dubai was one of the first Middle Eastern ports that allowed the U.S. to place security agents at the port, complied with electronic manifest requirements, and agreed to the installation of X-ray equipment.


Asking for Terror?
But what does all the screening matter when it only takes one Arab trained by Al Qaeda to sneak in and plant something?

Al Qaeda used its banking system to finance the 9/11 attacks, press reports said, and two of the 9/11 hijackers came from the U.A.E.

What if the goal of the terrorists has been all along to take over our ports in order to sneak WMD's into the country? Once the containers get pulled off and put on a truck, they can be moved anywhere. Remember money talks and people can be bought, especially Arab muslims who may have a vendetta against us.

Then again, it would be obvious if an attack happened, who did it. But so what, it would be too late and the country could be in ruins.

All in all, this is not a good decision by the White House or the president to back it. The risk simply isn't worth the potential cost, so the administration better drop this one like a hot iron or we could all get burned.

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# posted by OTTMANN @ 2/22/2006 02:31:00 AM