I can understand the questions about security. I agree that there are legitimate questions regarding the Dubi government’s stands on Israel and the Taliban. Clearly the administration did a poor job of communications regarding the deal. That all of this has brought overall port security back to our attention is a good thing.
Over riding all of that is my opinion that this whole thing is a mess. The latest, of course, is the House Appropriations Committee’s vote to bar DP World from holding leases or contracts at U.S. ports.
By a 62-2 margin, the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday voted to bar DP World, which is run by the government of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, from holding leases or contracts at U.S. ports.
The ports provision was added to a must-pass measure funding the war in Iraq and providing new hurricane relief.
In the Senate, Democrats moved for a vote as well by trying to attach a measure blocking the deal to legislation designed to overhaul rules governing travel, gifts and their dealings with lobbyists.
The deal has disapeared into the background of the discussion, or as Ed Morrissey put it,
The merits and demerits of the deal have become irrelevant in the panicked atmosphere that appears to have afflicted Congressional Republicans. Regardless of the merits of the deal — which I still don’t like — a second review would have allowed the White House to calm the hysteria and at least have an opportunity to get the facts on the table.
It is this political aspect that makes this a loser all the way around. Flopping Aces sees it as a panicked reaction.
But the fact that the Republicans went into panic mode while the Democrats took advantage of this panic has made me sadly reconsider. This smacks of going along with the polls, and that will not get us anywhere.
While there have been honest differences on the merits, there have been many more instances of misinformation and mischaracterization regarding the deal. Following the compromise that was reached to go through a second review, the decision to put this legislation on the table is just a bad, bad idea. Captain Ed again,
All this hysteria does is make the Republicans look as foolish and uninformed as Democrats. Instead of focusing on the hypocrisy of the opposition party (under whose administration the Chinese and Saudis took over management of American ports, and whose last President has been advising the UAE on the deal) in pushing ethnic profiling for port operators but not for immigration and airport security, the GOP has abandoned its President and a reasonable offer to suspend the deal pending review and oversight by Congress at the end of it. They could have waited for that review and allowed all the facts to come to light, and then made an informed and rational decision to kill it. This measure is the equivalent of putting hands over ears and shouting nonsense to avoid hearing any debate.
Accoring to this AP story the President is standing by his earlier veto promise.
“Our focus is on continuing to work with Congress to move forward on this issue,” White House press secretary Scott McClellan told reporters. “The lines of communication are open. There are members who have concerns. We believe it’s important to work with Congress to address those concerns, and find a way forward.”
It’s a mess. An ugly mess. John Hinderaker put it well in an email to Captain Ed — “the committee’s Republicans have formed a circular firing squad.”
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