Middle Tennesseans Rightfully Concerned About Port Security

Many Middle Tennesseans have contacted me to express their concern about and opposition to the deal that would turn over management of six major U.S. ports to a firm owned by the United Arab Emirates.

Under the agreement, Dubai Ports World would oversee operations of ports in Baltimore, Miami, Newark, New Orleans, New York and Philadelphia.

Amid the backlash from the public and Congress, the Administration has now agreed to conduct an investigation to determine the effects of this agreement on national security. But why did it take so long to come to this action?

A 1988 law requires the president to conduct a 45-day national security review of foreign acquisitions that may threaten national security. In this case, the review reluctantly was agreed to nearly six weeks after the deal was already made.

The public is right to be anxious about this matter. Americans deserve to know if this foreign outsourcing will weaken security at our ports.

Our seaports handle more than 95 percent of our nation’s foreign trade. The bipartisan 9/11 Commission concluded that America’s ports are particularly vulnerable to terrorist attacks because only 6 percent of cargo containers are screened upon entering the country.

Weeks ago, the U.S. Coast Guard expressed serious concern about the potential for security breaches with the Dubai Ports World contract.

The UAE was a key transfer point of illegal shipments of nuclear components to Iran, Libya and North Korea.

And while the UAE appears to have been a U.S. ally since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the country has harbored and aided some of the al Qaeda agents who were involved in the attack. The 9/11 Commission concluded that the majority of the money funding the attacks flowed through the UAE. In fact, the chairman of the 9/11 Commission has recommended against this deal.

Those facts certainly make a strong case that this particular foreign acquisition may threaten our national security.

I am co-sponsoring emergency legislation that would ensure that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States investigates the possible effects on national security. The bill would require a full report to Congress and would give Congress the power to disapprove the agreement within thirty days.

In addition, I have sent a letter to President Bush to let him know of my concerns and the concerns of hundreds of Middle Tennesseans who have contacted me with unease about this proposal.

At a time when our nation faces terrorism at home and abroad, the American people deserve to know their government is looking out for their best interest.