Home     Contact Us    
Main Board Job Seeker's Board Job Wanted Board Resume Bank Company Board Word Help Medquist New MTs Classifieds Offshore Concerns VR/Speech Recognition Tech Help Coding/Medical Billing
Gab Board Politics Comedy Stop Health Issues
ADVERTISEMENT




Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

Yet more confirmation that Georgie is clueless.

Posted By: see article inside on 2006-02-22
In Reply to: Ports - Lurker

Bush Unaware of Ports Deal Before Approval

By TED BRIDIS, Associated Press Writer 45 minutes ago

President Bush was unaware of the pending sale of shipping operations at six major U.S. seaports to a state-owned business in the United Arab Emirates until the deal already had been approved by his administration, the White House said Wednesday.

Defending the deal anew, the administration also said that it should have briefed Congress sooner about the transaction, which has triggered a major political backlash among both Republicans and Democrats.

Bush on Tuesday brushed aside objections by leaders in the Senate and House that the $6.8 billion sale could raise risks of terrorism at American ports. In a forceful defense of his administration's earlier approval of the deal, he pledged to veto any bill Congress might approve to block the agreement involving the sale of a British company to the Arab firm.

Bush faces a rebellion from leaders of his own party, as well as from Democrats, about the deal that would put Dubai Ports in charge of major shipping operations in New York, New Jersey, Baltimore, New Orleans, Miami and Philadelphia.

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.

The sale's harshest critics were not appeased.

I will fight harder than ever for this legislation, and if it is vetoed I will fight as hard as I can to override it, said Rep. Pete King, R-N.Y., chairman of the Homeland Security Committee. King and Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer (news, bio, voting record) of New York said they will introduce emergency legislation to suspend the ports deal.

Another Democrat, Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey, urged his colleagues to force Bush to wield his veto, which Bush — in his sixth year in office — has never done. We should really test the resolve of the president on this one because what we're really doing is securing the safety of our people.

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.

Earlier, several lawmakers determined to capsize the pending sale said they would not be deterred by Bush's veto threat.

Sen. Joseph Biden (news, bio, voting record), D-Del., said the bipartisan opposition to the deal indicated a lack of confidence in the administration on both sides. Sure, we have to link up with our Arab friends but ... we want to see and those in Congress want to know what ... safeguards are built in, Biden said on ABC's Good Morning America.

Bush's veto threat sought to quiet a political storm that has united Republican governors and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee with liberal Democrats, including New York Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Schumer.

To assuage concerns, the administration disclosed some assurances it negotiated with Dubai Ports. It required mandatory participation in U.S. security programs to stop smuggling and detect illegal shipments of nuclear materials; roughly 33 other port companies participate in these voluntarily. The Coast Guard also said it was nearly finished inspecting Dubai Ports' facilities in the United States.

Frist said Tuesday, before Bush's comments, that he would introduce legislation to put the sale on hold if the White House did not delay the takeover. He said the deal raised serious questions regarding the safety and security of our homeland.

House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., asked the president for a moratorium on the sale until it could be studied further. We must not allow the possibility of compromising our national security due to lack of review or oversight by the federal government, Hastert said.

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.

Lawmakers from both parties have noted that some of the Sept. 11 hijackers used the United Arab Emirates as an operational and financial base. In addition, critics contend the UAE was an important transfer point for shipments of smuggled nuclear components sent to Iran, North Korea and Libya by a Pakistani scientist.

___

Associated Press writers Ben Feller, Will Lester, Terence Hunt, and Devlin Barrett in Washington, Matthew Verrinder in Newark, N.J., and Tom Stuckey in Annapolis, Md., contributed to this report.





Complete Discussion Below: marks the location of current message within thread

The messages you are viewing are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select the boards given in left menu


Other related messages found in our database

Oops, meant "not clueless." Perhaps I'm not clueless but need to brush up on
nm
Nah - first time we got hit was under Georgie-Porgie
You feel unsafe under Obama, but you felt safe under Bush? That is laughable.
New Movie Out.. Not just Clueless but Totally Clueless
starring gt as the whining liberal elitist with the chihuahua.
member confirmation of SP's

membership in the group to secede from U.S.


http://www.sodahead.com/question/145353/?tko=polls_recent


 


Lots of confirmation of the talking points you mention.

Especially the inevitability of New Orleans. You can research the local papers and find articles that go back years. The funding to research and fix this has been the last 3 years W. has been in office. That is a fact. The Army Corps of Engineers chief quit in disgust over this issue some time ago and the former FEMA chairman was fired; the one who got things done, by the Bush administration..I don't know why.  Our leadership is lacking. We need a leader. We need someone to step up to the plate and start the ball rolling; to date, doctors, nurses, entertainers, basketball players and ordinary everyday people with some necessary skills have been on the ground working in a haphazard manner because there is no leadership. Bush 41 and Clinton have started their tsunami crusade a la New Orleans and I have to tell you, the both of them sitting on my TV screen asking for money, were more believable, more compassionate than anything we have seen from the WH. A lot of defensive people up there. Why doesn't someone lead. As the mayor of New Orleans said, Washington sent one John Wayne guy down there and he is evidently kicking butt, getting things done. Where are the leaders???


 


I'd say I'm clueless at all....

What is with the aversion to telling the truth, or at least providing sources for your claims?  Please, do a different dance than most of the neocons and provide some worthy evidence!!!!  That is all I'm asking.


Not really a hateful person at all....just tired of folks who do not value honesty, that's all.


Clueless!
//
Clueless!!!!!

no wonder the democrats are in such bad shape. you have no idea of the workings of the dow!  Man on manoschevitz!


You are obviously clueless since you have
remotely intelligent. I have a feeling it's because you haven't the slightest idea what you are talking about and you are only here because you love to stir up trash. You enjoy wallowing in that heap. I'll find someone who is capable of engaging in true debate and not looking to get their kicks with juvenile behavior.
TO clueless........
I am sick and tired of putting money in the hands of people who refuse to get off their butts. I do not want to pay for their many many children while they sit at home and wait for the Headstart bus to give their child curbside service so they can have a babysitter for their child all day long, while they do nothing to better themselves, even though they can go back to school during this time, get an education, H@LL FIRE, get a job. Most of these folks are within walking distances to a job but they don't want one because that would mean having to pay their own way in life. They have better than many members of my family who have actually worked their entire lives and haven't asked for a handout while they sit and watch neighbors living in HUD houses, tear them up, party all day and all night, children running rampant all over the place....it's sickening really.

When you see your paycheck dwindle to nothing, just know you can be proud in saying you contributed to the welfare roll.
Wow - you really ARE clueless.
I don't give two poos about gay marriage. So YOUR negaitive energy is misdirected.

I have this mental picture of you.

It looks a lot like Gollum.
You are truly clueless..........
I said there are blacks in my community that do NOT take advanatage of the opportunities afforded them. And, please, no kid around here is choosing to sell drugs to support their families. I was born very poor and I have better since than to sell drugs or steal.

You need to get off your righteous high horse and get a clue. Being poor is no excuse, NO EXCUSE, for murdering innocent people because you want a dollar in your pocket. I didn't have a say in when I arrived either, but I sure as heck know the difference between right and wrong.

BTW, these poor kids's government is not there to SUPPORT them, even though my tax dollars do just that! That attitude is the problem with the thinking of those that think they are "entitled" to more free money. You obviously feel you need the government to make your living and do your thinking for you as well as these kids. Their government is supposed to be there for the purpose of providing a strong military to support the safety of our country, not pay their way through life!!!

There are plenty of poor white kids around here....I spend time in our schools and believe me, there are many poor kids of both colors. Crimes are committed by those of both races, but the greatest number are by blacks. If you don't like those numbers, too bad; those are the facts. Those gangs which you seem to think so highly of only support one thing......more CRIME!
You need to get yourself into one of our schools around here and ask some of the children what they want to be when they grow up......you would be shocked to hear the answers. Some people just live in a dream world. Continue to feel sorry for their situation and encourage that behavior; your attitude does just that.


Clueless......
And who voted for GW? Hahahaha! I'm glad we have mental giants such as you who can sum it all up for us! You sho must make a LOT of money to support all those lazy people out there.
CLUELESS = NOTHING TO SAY!
@@
Clueless
Why don't you stick to commenting on things you actually have a clue about? I'm sure that the president was intricately involved in all aspects of the strategy for this rescue operation, even though you didn't hear about it.
LOL.....totally clueless. So, gt.....sm
It only matters to you if a Republican's ancient ancestor was in cahoots with Hitler.  But Democrats can skate, right?  Right!  Gotcha!
You are clueless and hateful
and EVERYTHING stated in that article is LIES!
You just proved how clueless you are
Are your paranoid or have you been drinking again?  I love confusing liberals, but then it's not too hard to do.
She's as clueless as the president...nm

They are clueless on purpose ...
it's almost laughable.
clueless...idiots...
x
You really are clueless aren't you?
There is a word for rising up against your government and our founding fathers made sure the CITIZENS of this country, who OWN their government, had in place a constitution which actually ALLOWED us to rise up and speak AGAINST our government if EVER we felt our government was out of control.

That's why the 'right to bear arms' was put in there or did you overlook that too?

You are so diluded in your thinking that you actually BELIEVE no one is supposed to speak out against their government. Do you know WHY our founding fathers wanted to make sure Americans had firearms? To stand up and resist a tyranical government when it is out of control.

You better be glad somebody cares enough for your backside that they still understand what your rights are, cause you SURE DON'T!

You have no problem with anyone speaking against our government; you have a problem with someone speaking against THIS president, cause he is black and you can't stand it! If you do nothing else, be honest about that at least.... it's so obvious!
You are truly one clueless person.

You are truly one clueless person.

You are welcome. (and totally clueless but who cares). nm

Whatever...you are so clueless...You wouldn't know the right context...sm
if it bit you on the butt. Too bad, soooo sad.


Why are people clueless?! Because they don't agree with YOU?!
xx
You are clueless or you would realize the point!!!
--
I would say as long as you are willing to walk around clueless.
xx
I would say as long as you are willing to walk around clueless.

Oh, and by the by, I don't remember addressing this to whatever your name is.


All the while telling us how hateful WE are. Totally clueless. nm

More clueless brain death from fringe.
x
Obama supporters are the most clueless people
nm
W's clueless response is equally as disturbing.
"So what if the guy threw his shoe at me?" Bush told a reporter in response to a question about the incident.

"Let me talk about the guy throwing his shoe. It's one way to gain attention. It's like going to a political rally and having people yell at you. It's like driving down the street and having people not gesturing with all five fingers. ...These journalists here were very apologetic. They ... said this doesn't represent the Iraqi people, but that's what happens in free societies where people try to draw attention to themselves."

So what? How many agree that this guy was seeking attention? Only on the W planet would the alleged leader of the free world be so unconscious and so casual about this deepest of insults. Who cares? Not W, evidently.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/14/bush.iraq/index.html

yes, calling ppl idiots and clueless is pathetic
x)
You're sarcastically clueless. Any chance you could buy a clue?


If you took a second out of your I love Bush, and nobody else cloud, you would see that we do care about our soldiers, our countrymen.  But, you're so full of the Bush Kool-Aid you can't see straight. Did you even read the article???  You obviously didn't from your response.  Knowledge is a powerful thing.  It's not just liberals feeling this way about Bush and his war, the country is at a divide and more people support his impeachment than those who supported Clinton's impeachment that by the way republicans pursued on their own to defame the president in front of the world any all and any cost. So you can save your do the right thing speech.


Obama supporters are clueless, apparently dont
nm
Why does Obama winning make Americans clueless?...nm
ss
Wrong, wrong, wrong, clueless Lu.
Horse hockey