More on the Dubai Deal

Even if all our ports were controlled by American corporations, it's clear not enough has been to assure a reasonable level of security. Only 2-5% of containers entering our country are even checked. On 9/11, the terrorists exploited a weakness in the way we handle hijacking (despite warnings to our government that terrorists might turn aircraft into weapons). If the terrorists ever do get a nuclear device (not an easy thing to do but devastating if they succeeded in doing so), they will be looking for weaknesses in our port security. It seems to me that the owners of the Dubai corporation that will take over our ports could be thoroughly professional and honest but that doesn't obviate the fact that the security of our ports would be more exposed, not less exposed by the deal. The fact that many of the port documents and details about the ports will be in Dubai rather than on American soil is not reassuring.

American Pundit has an interesting observation on Bush's less than reassuring words:

President Bush threatened to veto Republican Congressional leaders' attempts to slow down or stop the sale saying, "I can understand why some in Congress have raised questions about whether or not our country will be less secure as a result of this transaction, but they need to know that our government has looked at this issue and looked at it carefully."

Huh? Last time I checked our Constitution, Congress was an integral part of "our government". "Our government," as well as the American public have some legitimate national security concerns about this deal. President Bush needs to address those concerns by making the vetting process more transparent.

'Our government' is usually the kind of phrase a president uses when talking to other nations, not when talking to Congress, particularly since Congress also has the constitutional right and obligation to look carefully at issues like this. I'm not going to criticize Bush every time he makes one of his famous verbal gaffes but given the way that he unilaterally bypasses Congress and the fact that his administration has made a long series of blunders and misjudgments, maybe it's time for Bush to be a little less arrogant and to listen to Congress.