Intelligence agencies scrutinized ports deal: White House

[sabra]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/22/AR2006022200830.html

Intelligence agencies scrutinized ports deal: White House
Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence agencies scrutinized for security concerns a deal to allow a state-owned Dubai company to manage major U.S. ports, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said on Wednesday.

In defending President George W. Bush's stance that the deal should move forward, McClellan said: "The counterterrorism experts looked at it. The intelligence community did assessments to make sure that there was no national security threat."

[DoYouEverWonder]

1. If our intel agencies don't see any problems with this deal

then maybe we should save all that money we waste on them and spend it on something useful like health care and alternative energy, because these assholes are obviously worthless.

[VegasWolf]

13. Yeah, and look how well they handled all those pre-911 warnings!

:puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke::puke:

[rodeodance]

2. LBN Bush did not know about it--

[shoelace414]

3. and that's darn good intellegence.

[Canuckistanian]

4. I'm sure Porter Goss saw no problem with it.

Now, if anyone had asked an actual ANALYST with EXPERTISE, I think there would be.... "concern".

[librechik]

5. "We had to bypass the Congress and the courts;

they would have turned the deal down, see? We had no choice."

[bobthedrummer]

6. Negroponte...

[bobthedrummer]

19. Looks indeed like it was Negroponte who vetted this.

on edit:
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=1097504§ion=news&src=rss?uk?worldNews

[Norquist Nemesis]

7. Oh, Goody! We can blame THEM again!

Oh, ferchristsake! Just Impeach the lot of them in this administration NOW!!!!!!!!!

[spindrifter]

8. How long did they spend

throughly reviewing the security issues related to the P & O takeover by DP World? It certainly could not have been very long, given that the shareholders only approved the sale about a week or two ago. Prior to that PSA was a possible new owner, so if the review committee was reviewing security early, they would have needed to look at the set-up for both companies.

http://wireservice.wired.com/wired/story.asp?section=Breaking&storyId=1160760&tw=wn_wire_story

[xiamiam]

10. mid nov to mid jan..nt

[xiamiam]

9. they did not even check hiring practices Scott..

[oscarguy]

11. BUSHCO got rid of Intel. Pers. who would stand up to him...

such as anti-terrorist experts like Richard Clarke and Valorie Plame. People who don`t go along with thier B.S. simply are gotten rid of one way or another. ...Oscar

[seafan]

12. So, * checked w/ Intel, Cabinet Secretaries, but Rummy said in a press

conference yesterday, Feb. 21, that HE didn't even know about it!

But, Rummy! YOU ARE ON THIS SECRET PANEL!!!!!!

BREAKING: Rumsfeld and Pace Not Consulted On Transfer Of Port Operations To UAE

In a press briefing today, Secretary Rumsfeld revealed that he was not consulted about the decision to transfer operations of six key U.S. ports to the United Arab Emirates, a country with troubling ties to international terrorism.

QUESTION: Are you confident that any problems with security — from what you know, are you confident that any problems with security would not be greater with a UAE company running this than an American company?

RUMSFELD: I am reluctant to make judgments based on the minimal amount of information I have because I just heard about this over the weekend.

http://thinkprogress.org/2006/02/21/rumsfeld-not-consulted/




And from poor little Scotty, the cleaner-upper of * messes:

While Bush has adamantly defended the deal, the White House acknowledged that he did not know about it until recently.

"He became aware of it over the last several days," McClellan said. Asked if Bush did not know about it until it was a done deal, McClellan said, "That's correct." He said the matter did not rise to the presidential level, but went through a congressionally-mandated review process and was determined not to pose a national security threat.
"The president made sure to check with all the Cabinet secretaries that are part of this process, or whose agencies or departments are part of this process," the spokesman said. "He made sure to check with them — even after this got more attention in the press, to make sure that they were comfortable with the decision that was made."

"And every one of the Cabinet secretaries expressed that they were comfortable with this transaction being approved," he said.
Commerce Secretary Carlos Guiterrez, told The Associated Press in an interview: "They are not in charge of security. We are not turning over the security of our ports. When people make statements like that you get an instant emotional reaction."

snip

McClellan dismissed any connection between the deal and David Sanborn of Virginia, a former senior DP World executive whom the White House appointed last month to be the new administrator of the Maritime Administration of the Transportation Department. Sanborn worked as DP World's director of operations for Europe and Latin America.

"My understanding is that he has assured us that he was not involved in the negotiations to purchase this British company," McClellan added.
"In terms of David Sanborn, he was nominated to run the Maritime Administration because of his experience and expertise," the spokesman said. Sanborn is a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. He is an operations professional.

snip

Bush took the rare step of calling reporters to his conference room on Air Force One after returning from a speech in Colorado. He also stopped to talk before television cameras after he returned to the White House.
He said that members of Congress "need to know that our government has looked at this issue and looked at it carefully."
A senior executive from Dubai Ports World pledged the company would agree to whatever security precautions the U.S. government demanded to salvage the deal. Chief operating officer Edward "Ted" H. Bilkey promised Dubai Ports "will fully cooperate in putting into place whatever is necessary to protect the terminals."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060222/ap_on_go_pr_wh/ports_security




But, but, but, there were NO BACKGROUND CHECKS AND NO GATHERING OF OUTSIDE INFORMATION!!!!!!!

NYT: February 17, 2006

Stewart Baker, assistant secretary for policy at the Department of Homeland Security, said his department had no information about Dubai Ports World that justified an objection to the deal. Indeed, he said, the company has cooperated with the department in its efforts to secure American ports and ships in foreign ports.

"We did not find derogatory information in our review," he said.

But that review, Mr. Baker said, did not involve gathering information from outside sources, like the Port Authority, because the committee must keep a proposed transaction secret. He said the committee's investigation began in November and ended in mid-January.

The investigation did not include background checks on the senior managers of the company or an evaluation of how the company screens its own employees, Mr. King said. "Certainly, you would think they would talk to the Port Authority," he added.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/17/nyregion/17ports.html?pagewanted=print




WHO IS RUNNING OUR GOVERNMENT?? H-E-L-L-O----------

It's the *tough on terror*, Keep-Us-Safe guy everybody would like to have a beer with. Forgive us for asking. Who's our daddy.

We are in deep, deep doodoo.

[Skittles]

14. this post deserves its own thread

yes INDEED

[seafan]

15. OK, will put in GD. n/t

[lumpy]

17. Nobody and Everybody is in charge.

Intelligent leadership should start in the Oval office followed by strong leadership in Congress. We have neither. You might say we are afflicted by anarchristic bureaucrisy. This is the one thing the Grand Old Party has always feared. The Neocons have screwed up. States rights needs a hand up or we might be going the way of the USSR at a terrible price.

[Bandit]

16. Didn't those same "Intelligence Agencies" say Saddam had WMDs

Fool me once shame and you can't fool me again...:shrug:

[Trillo]

18. Deal checked by U.S. intelligence agencies?

Does it bring in MONEY? Check

APPROVED.

[goforit]

20. OMG...... This is such crap!!!

[bobthedrummer]

21. kick

[sattahipdeep]

22. A.Q. Kahn....Bob Dole --- Michael Ledeen....denounced the deal

You don't need to be a member of the Council on Foreign Relations to grasp
that a country that embraced the Taliban, was a financial hub for the 9/11
attackers, and whose own ports were used by notorious Pakistani scientist
A.Q. Kahn to smuggle nuclear components....

Among the GOP officeholders joining King and Myrick at the port deal barricades
are Bill Frist, Dennis Hastert, George Pataki, Michael Bloomberg, Susan
Collins, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Tom Reynolds, chairman of the National
Republican Campaign Committee -- who clearly knows a losing issue when he sees
one. Conservative commentators John Kasich, Cal Thomas, Hugh Hewitt, and
conservative national security analysts Michael Ledeen and Frank Gaffney have
also denounced the deal.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20060222/cm_huffpost/016187;_ylt=A86.I2ROX_1DimABvxf9wxIF;_ylu=X3oDMTBjMHVqMTQ4BHNlYwN5bnN1YmNhdA--

"This didn't rise to the presidential level," McClellan said.

Under the transaction set to take effect next week, Dubai Ports World, a United Arab
Emirates-owned company, would manage terminals at the six ports now run by a
British company that Dubai Ports World bought for $6.8 billion.

A Department of Homeland Security staffer said mid-level officials who assess
proposed deals generally do not want to waste the president's time by asking him to
review corporate transactions, said a participant in the meetings.

Meanwhile, Dubai Ports World retained the services of former Sen. Bob Dole, the
GOP's presidential candidate in 1996, to help calm opposition on Capitol Hill

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/02/23/MNG7UHDAU01.DTL