Ridge: White House should explain port deal

[deminks]

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/02/20/port.security/index.html?section=cnn_latest

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration needs to show Congress why national security won't be hurt by a deal that gives a company based in the United Arab Emirates management of six major U.S. ports, former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Monday.

Ridge, appearing on CNN's "American Morning," said, "I think the anxiety and the concern that has been expressed by congressmen and senators and elsewhere is legitimate."

Ridge said that during his tenure as secretary of homeland security from October 2001 to February 2005, he sat in on deals with similar national security concerns and officials would not jeopardize national security.

"The bottom line is I think we need a little more transparency here," he said. "There are legitimate concerns about who would be in charge of hiring and firing and security measures -- added technology in these ports that we need to upgrade our security." (Watch lawmakers call for deal to be stopped -- 2:55)

[wisteria]

1. Well, he does make sense. Maybe he realized what was to come

and got out just in time. Has this administration finally lost it?

[sam sarrha]

6. It has been like a bunch of F'n Corporate monkeys at a salad bar since W

was elected..

we need to realize that these people are mentally ill and we need to take back our country from the Fascist corporations and their Minions.. that is why they are so afraid of and demonetize the French, the French really knew how to throw a Revolution.

[sam sarrha]

2. jr is just making himself, his daddy and daddys friends 'Mo Mony'

it is all about money and no one is tighter with the arabs than Bu$hitCo

[Barrett808]

4. It probably wouldn't be too hard to trace the money flow

It would probably involve UBS in some significant way.

[sam sarrha]

8. you mean like when the SEC chairman appointed by Bu$h Sr, appointed Poppys

private lawyer to investigate Dubya's illegal private Harkin stock sales to Jim Hicks and didn't report it for nearly a year until the company crashed and lost thousands of peoples investments.. Dubya did that 3 times.. it holds a penalty of 15 years Federal time..

the 'Official' Investigation never got out of the break room, no one was questioned and the final determination was that no evidence of a crime was nound...

[sam sarrha]

9. the PROBLEM is that the power in the UAE can change any time..

and we dont know who is working in the background other than Bu$hitCo as always

[Barrett808]

19. I would also bet that Carlyle stands to profit somehow. n/t

[Fridays Child]

3. So, they're not up to anything bad but they should be more open?

Uh huh. Right. I think they're going to pull a switcheroo. They'll back down and give the contract to Halliburton, which was the plan all along. We'll all breathe a sigh of relief and say, "Well, at least it's an American company."

[superconnected]

5. Thank God. Good Tom Ridge.

However I don't think you'll be able to keep your job long for pointing that out.

The Bush adminstration only cares about one thing - lining it's wallets. They are treasoning America to do it. This is a blantant act of selling us out. So many people won't open their eyes to 911 but maybe they will open their eyes to this. We can only hope finally their propaganda hate/fear arabs machine backfires and their base wakes up with this knowlege and stops supporting them.

Ah "former homeland security secretary". So he can speak somewhat freely. He already lost his job.

[gratuitous]

7. Explanation? Transparency? Pardon me, but . . .

:rofl:

Ridge knows as well as anyone what this corrupt administration's stock in trade is, and it isn't serving the American people, upholding and defending the Constitution, or anything else that gets in the way of gathering more power to themselves. It's nice that Ridge thought he should speak up, but the corrupt Bush administration just flat doesn't give a fart.

[rodeodance]

10. He will have Gonzalas give the Intel. comm. a briefing!!!

seemed to calm the uproar over NSA--

[superconnected]

11. Truly up Bushcos corportist ally - from Wikepedia - United Arab Emirates -

UAE - United Arab Emirates is a country founded by former Pirates and now known as a mafios type regime.

The UAE's wealth is largely based on oil and gas output, some 33% of GDP. It is the third largest oil producer in the Persian Gulf after Saudi Arabia and Iran (Iraq's oil output has fluctuated due to war).
.
.
.
It is common practice for employers to retain employees' passports for the duration of the employment contract to prevent expatriate employees from changing jobs. This is an illegal practice, but it is almost never investigated, let alone punished by the government. On termination of an employment contract, certain categories of expatriates are banned from obtaining a work permit in the country for six months.

The United States Department of State has cited widespread instances of blue collar labor abuse in the general context of the United Arab Emirates <1>.

The government has been criticized by human rights agencies such as Human Rights Watch for its inaction in addressing the discrimination against Asian workers in the emirate. Salary structures based on nationality, sex, age, and race rather than on qualification are common <2>.

According to Ansar Burney Trust - a thriving sex industry, although illegal, exists in the emirates, especially in Dubai. This complements the tourism and hospitality industry which forms a major part of Dubai's economy <3>.

The UAE's human rights record, particularly in relation to migrant workers, was widely criticised during the trials of Sarah Balabagan in 1995.

A website www.mafiwasta.com is campaigning to pressure the government of the UAE into signing up to International Labour Organisation core conventions on freedom of association. Strikes and unions are currently banned in the UAE and many labourers are virtual prisoners, having paid huge agents' fees in order to obtain jobs and visas.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United%5FArab%5FEmirates

[leesa]

12. All he has to do is tell the greedy Republicans they'll get a tax break

and they'll go for it. Good fer bidness.

[Coastie for Truth]

13. Is this some sort of pay back by Bush to the "Moderate Arabs"

Kind of blood money for the destruction of Iraq, or for even breathing a word about "Energy Independence."

I am enough of a Bush hater that I do not see this as a simple commercial deal.

[Zenlitened]

14. It's not "a company based in the United Arab Emirates," is it?

It's a UAE state-owned company. Which basically means, if I'm undertsanding this correctly, that Bush is selling control of six American ports to the UAE government.

:shrug:

[ronnie624]

15. Your understanding is correct.

The quote from the article in your post is just one more example of the corporate media's complicity in the Bush administration's crimes.

[Roland99]

16. "I suspect they can do that" (show how security will be enhanced)

I suspect this administration can do an awful lot. It doesn't take much for this administration to put together a case to sell it as sound national security. The media sure isn't going to pick it apart and the WH will browbeat and threaten any moderate GOP Senator/Republican into supporting it.

[Synnical]

17. And the statement not mentioned in this article

But that had me laughing out loud:

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0602/20/ltm.08.html

RIDGE: But I also sat in on that similar process when we reviewed some other potential sales that could have an impact on American security and I do think that at some point in time, you have to say to yourself would Secretaries Rumsfeld and Snow and Chertoff and Rice compromise American security? I don't think so.

[tanyev]

18. I've asked myself that question a lot, Mr. Ridge.

Kept coming up with a completely different answer, though.

[antonialee839]

20. Perhaps they will explain it with a color wheel.