David,
Please continue your hard hitting questioning at the press conferences. This port deal is another in a long string of incidences that is shrouded in secrecy, so much so that even Bush isn't aware of it until it's revealed in the press. We need you and your likes to protect our country. Does anyone remember Bush's speech, in defense of invading Iraq, where he said we would not tolerate any country that harbors or facilitates terrorists? And now we're selling part of our country to such a country? And once again, the administration attacks those who dare question them, using slander, labeling such "cheeky" questioners as racists, isolationists, etc.

With all the concern for national security and conflict of interests I would wonder why George W. Bush would nominate Dave Sanborn (a senior executive at DP World)on 1/24/06 for the position of Maritime Administrator reporting directly to Norman Mineta.
Following that on 1/26/06 DP World has made an acceptable offer to buy P&O the company that operates some of the most critical port operations on the East and Gulf coasts.

"For the love of money is the root of all evil" Has everything to do with this scenario, soon our American lives will be outsourced forever. Thanks for your dogged vigilance at the White House. The others there can't be trusted!

The real shock to me is that now the U.S. appears unable (or unwilling) to run its own ports? Why on earth, if it's such a lucrative business, are there not legions of U.S. management and operations companies standing in line to get the business? What role do the various Port Authorities play in this? How come the federal government gets to make decisions like this in the first place? What happened to state's rights and local jurisdictions? While I suppose the actual "hands's on jobs" will be held by Americans, the corporate profits will nonetheless flow to foreign coffers. If these guys are so good running ports, maybe we should look around for countries which are good at running a government and contract that out too!

my objection, which everyone seems to ignore is that THIS foreign company is STATE owned, one that funded 9/11 etc. If ANY foreign country has "control" of of our ports, what happpens in a war??????!!!

David: This story has more to it than meets the eye. Keep with it, follow the money. While all of the information above gives me great concern there are two other overlooked points: 1) The UAE has a poor track record on human rights. 2) They do not recognize the State of Israel. I also think in some odd way Rove anted this story out now because the War in Iraq has become a civil war (one now recognized in the media). The Civil War there was predicted by your own analysts before the first troop was deployed. There is a different conscience in the Middle East, different culture. You can not dump democracy into someone lap and tell them they have it. They have to earn it, with a fire in the belly that drives one to protect the freedoms or whatever they are fighting for. We American should not allow this port transaction to happen. I do not care how many experts say "it is safe and no real security problem". It is improper! It is out sourcing. It is a money game. But focus your attention on this Civil War thing. We should not have been there in the first place. Civil War was a foregone conclusion, and Rove is laughing like a hyena that everyone is looking at the port controversy and not at getting us out of Iraq, where we shouldn't have gone in the first place.

As a Democrat it is pleasing to see the Administration's discomfiture on the security issue; as a Jew it is comforting to see American concern about too intimate an economic involvement with some Arab countries; however, as an American I have to side with the President on this one. While I think this has been one of the most corrupt and incompetent administrations in our history, I am more concerned about xenophobia and anti-Arab bias. Do we really think that it is okay for China to run some of our ports but not okay for the UAE to run some? In the long run, anti-Arab hysteria will harm all of us. I would rather debate them on the merits of issues where we disagree than dismiss them as people in the ways we dismissed Asians as the yellow peril or saw every early anti-Nazi as part of the red peril.

The Bush administration keeps making moves that would have lead to president Clinton losing his head.Their 'bold' spin on the UAE in some ways does make political and alliance sense.On the other hand, comparing the UAE to British control ignores some pretty big issues.I see this as a culture problem more then a trade problem.Are Americans allowed to display our American flag or pray or preach to our Christian God in the UAE?Are woman accorded equal rights,let alone the right to vote?Is freedom of speech encouraged?These questions,in my opinion,far from being bias,need to be addressed of a company that is of a foreign state origin and is going to be in control of a major part of our American ecomomy(i.e. jobs-trade).Obviously,these issues are not being addressed when we must simply believe Mr.Bush and his administration when they compare The UAE control to that of the British.In fact,this 'smoke screen' is exactly what scares me.
Blowing off American concerns could lead to major labor,trade,freedom,safty and cultural issues in the near furture.This leads to the question...are we,as Americans,as safe in our own country,in our own ports,with the UAE state run company in charge?I,for one,would like to know for sure that I am before I blindly support such a major business deal.

David,
Let me get this straight. The departments of justice, defense,state,and homeland security, all of whom give the President a daily briefing,didn't bother to mention the fact that they approved a deal turning over our ports to a foreign government.Not a foreign company, a FOREIGN COUNRTY!!!!!What exactly do they discuss at these meetings? Who gets the poppy seed bagel?Is anybody in charge?This really sets a new standard for incompetence!The President had to learn about this through the press?This is how he get's his information?Someone hands him a copy of the NY times?I have zero confidence that this Administration is ready for or can handle a real terrorist threat.Anyone who really believes we are safer now than before 9/11 must be smoking crack!!!!But don't fear, the spin doctors will find a way to blame the press!You know,poor Bush bashing!!!
Don Iodice
Woodbridge,NJ

There is not a serious discussion happening here. Making detailed information about our port infrastructure available would be an automatic outcome of the contract for port management. We are expected to trust that information will be protected by people that have not demonstrated an ability to halt the growth of terrorism flowing out of Arab states. A portion of U.S. dollars that is paying for OPEC oil is being used to fund terrorism is a generally accepted fact. Why on earth should the U.S. engage in an agreement that provides a source of sensitive information and dollars to a government that cannot, under any circumstance, control radical elements in the region that are sure to find ways to obtain and use some of the information and dollars against us. Saudi Arabia is also a stauch ally of the U.S. but that has not stopped the flow of people or dollars coming from that state that is being channelled to terrorist activities. You cannot control all the private or secret sympathys of individuals in a large entity such as this and if the overall group has a large subgroup that may have terrorist ties you face an unacceptable elevation of risk.

The U.S. cannot enter into an agreement that almost certainly increases our risk from terrorist activity.

So, they import trade materials from us and we buy oil from them, what's the big deal? The clear solution here is that we stop buying oil from them if they stop trading with us. Not hey, keep trading with us and we'll sell you control of six of our biggest port operations.

They may not have control of security but they will have some control over scheduling that's for sure.

This is called selling us the rope that we will hang ourselves with.

No thank you Mr. Bush... you and your family's Saudi Friends.

For me this is real simple:

As long as the President is telling me that we are at war, that Americans must give up freedoms (Patriot Act) so that he can effectively deal with the continuous terror threat, American boys are dying, hundred of billions of dollars are being spent at the expense of social security and health care to fund this "war" --- I don't want Arabs "managing" the ports of the U.S.

Oh! When will America learn? Of course, you have to trust, but to what extent? As they say “ Trust is like money; you spend it, you save it, you lend it, and sometimes you are robbed”. Take a look at the cartoon issue. The cartoons originated from Denmark and the protesters were burning the US Flags! I, for one did not understand the connection. Maybe the company that is being talked about is indeed a good one, but think further…I am sure all in the company speak the English language, but how may Americans can even understand, much less speak the Arab language? Would this alone not be enough for the bad guys to “INFILTERATE” and plan the unthinkable? For the company is free to hire anyone! In addition, let us not forget that the business being talked about is the one that literally holds the keys to DOORS of AMERICA. I do not feel that you cannot trust, just not on this one, not yet. Again, it is not about the company itself, rather the VULNERABILITY of the company.
Well, if “it was unfair to hold Dubai Ports World, a state-owned company in the UAE, to a different standard than a British company that had the contract”, will The US be doing business with Hamas too? (After all, they are democratically elected and US is all about spreading freedom and democracy!!!).
What next? Which Middle Eastern country gets to control your Immigration and Naturalization Services?
Above all in the name of “winning hearts and minds”, I hope that “United States of America” will NOT change its name as “ United States of Al-Arabia”!
BTW David, I applaud your courage and love your reporting.

Like Saudi Arabia -the UAE shakes hands with the USA with their right, and stabs us with the left. Petrodollars recyle into terrorism - and port access will recyle into a dirty bomb attack on our ports. Oversimplification? No - just a sad reality. Remember how the Saudis were our "friends forever" then kicked us unceremoniously off their "holy land?" Have we learned that lesson?

There's something going on here. We just don't know what it is yet. I'm sure it has to do with money. There may also be a political plan going on behind the scenes too. I can't imagine Karl Rove would let this slip by.

David, the other key issue here is the lack of the administrations attention to out-sourcing of American jobs. This deal represents another, of a long list, of jobs that have been out sourced, where once again the administration is tone deaf.

The 7 billion dollars trade surplus is this a paper only surplus or is this something we can take to the bank today.Sound to me that this is another one of those after they get what they want we will hear how some one made a mistake.There were no weapons of mass destruction he got his man and he should have ended it there . Now the whole world is seeing just what a desparate jack ass this man is . In my opnion we do not have a president we have two of the worlds biggest Pimps in the white house.When he gets out of office we will have nothing no money and our world respect will be zero.

No matter how any of us(Americans) feel about this port fiasco for or against(IM AGAINST) it will go thru the reasons:

1. Our beloved United States is in so much DEBT and this so compromises us with the rest of the world
2. We are in debt with almost every nation upon our planet but especially in debt with the Saudis the UAE
3. We have stressed our friendships with other nations to the point that we are a laughing stock not only to most of the world but especially to the Arab countries
4. Oil
5. There is so much borrowed $$$$ from the oil rich that they are simply taking up deals to buy out America
6. The Govt(Bush admin) has doubled now tripled the cost of war in the name of protecting this country that now they have to sell us out and leave us vunerable to countries that want their $$$$
7. This is a signed done deal the president has no intentions of stopping this and never did he thought it would quietly go thru the American public would bitch a while then forget that another country has control over our ports
8. It is a small price to pay for our govt to rectify some of the debt in their eyes but it will all be bore on our backs and the outcome will be horrible in my view

To understand what I mean about this debt is that you pay alot of IOU's with a smile on your face and a pat on their ass, call it what you will but the govt knew exactly what it was doing by approving this sale and also knew how most americans(the ones that are paying attention that is) would go off but to no avail, trust me our govt speaks for themselves and their agendas NOT WHAT IS IMPORTANT FOR US OUR COUNTRY OUR LAWS OR ETHICS

I mean come on Homeland Security turned monitoring of our security over to Korea, Chertoffs comment was he feels fairly comfortable(something to that degree)that it was an OK situation, I dont know about all of you BUT Im not confortable with any of this are they selling us out because they can or because we have made ourselves so valuable that the cost of paper pushing, taking out the trash, keeping things tidy and watching our own backs is so costly that the American people wont bend to accept reasonable rates of pay for this work THINK ABOUT IT! Is our work getting farmed out because we consider ourselves to worthy to TAKE OUT OUR OWN GARBAGE soooo they sell us out, I dont know what the answers are but I know that Im gravely concerned over the direction that America and Americans are going to!

Remember WE THE PEOPLE well we need to stand and stand together OPEN our eyes and see what is going on in this country, Im self employed my family and I work 7 days 365 days a year to keep our heads above water and I mean just above water when we need to hire people to work for us they are generally AMERICANS drop outs from school, addicted to alcohol/drugs, lazy lazy lazy lazy lazy, no skills not even communications and they want $10.00 per hour and when you say oh my we can not afford to pay you that WE dont make that they quickly get up and walk out! We all are the back bone of this country and if we dont WAKE UP OPEN OUR EYES AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT we may end up living in a country that no longer belongs to us.....for what its worth this is my opinion.......

you must be doing a LOT of head scratching these days

keep holdin it down at the white house while we 2nd-year reporters hold it down in market 151

the Tampa Tribune article dated Feb 22, 2006 ref. one lone nay from Hillsborough county councilwoman, Rhonda Storms in special meeting with Tampa mayor discussing probable UAE company to manage the port of Tampa.Just a very short distance from USCENTRAL COMMAND and SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND, the two prime planning players in both areas of middle eastern conflict.Can you really say this is a safe choice W?

THE RECENT CONTROVERSRY ON WHO SHOULD CONTROL OUR NATIONS PORTS COMES DOWN TO MONEY NOT IMPROVING INTERANATIONAL REALATIONS WITH OUR ARAB NEIGHBORS. IT IS A MATTER OF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY THAT SHOULD BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY WHOEVER CONTROLS THE CONTRACTS CONTROLS THE PORTS. WE AS A NATION SHOULD NOT SELL OUT OUR PORTS TO THE UAE JUST BECUASE WE HAVE PRIOR DEALINGS WITH THEM IN THE PAST. THE ADMINISTRATION CAN IMPROVE RELATIONS WITHOUT HAVING TO PUT OUT COUNTRY'S SECURITY AT RISK.

Do you ever get tired of it?

Lies about lies about more lies. No, curious George and the spin doctors will never, ever, tell you the truth. Never. Neither will the next boat load of crooks who take office.

Why does anybody pretend to believe any of it? Why do reporters pretending these crooks are credible?

I'm confused. The president took a strong stand on this issue, but the WH says he knew nothing about the agreement. Which is it? He can't have it both ways. Either he had all the facts, considered the consequences and made a decision or, he had no clue about what anyone was talking about.

Last I remember this President declared we were at war. His father, for whom I have the utmost respect, knew what war was. Over 2000 of our best and bravest have made the ultimate sacrifice in our latest endeavor so we can have this little chat in the safety of a nation state that has an expectation of freedom of expression and rule of law. They knew what war was and so do their families. We’ve spent hundreds of billions in Afghanistan and Iraq - can’t we afford a measly 7 billion to control our own ports and help insure the safety of the families our soldiers left behind? As a life long Republican, I pray daily for the safety of Senator John McCain.

The big question that I have is "was this port situation bid out among different companies" and if not, why not? Federal Procurement law used to say contracts over $25,000 has to be bid out. Is the Executive Branch exempt from the Federal Procurement Regulations?