The rift between Bush and Republican Congressmen gets worse.

[MrFun]

Bush is reaping what he has sown.

Divide within Republican Party.

[MrFun]

The Dubai controversy continues.

[MrFun]

[Apocalypse]

Originally posted by MrFun
The Dubai controversy continues.

I thought the Bush part of the Dubai controversy was over now that it has been found that Clinton is a lobbist for them...

[Apocalypse]

Hillary Clinton 'unaware' of Bill's Dubai ties
Updated: 3:12 a.m. ET March 4, 2006

Hillary Clinton, a leading opponent of DP World's takeover of some US port operations, was this week forced to admit that she did not know her husband had advised Dubai leaders on how to handle the growing dispute.

But former President Bill Clinton's ties to Dubai and the United Arab Emirates should not have come as a surprise to his New York senator wife.
Story continues below ↓
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Mrs Clinton's own senatorial financial disclosure forms reveal that her husband earned $450,000 giving speeches in Dubai in 2002.

Officials from the UAE also donated between $500,000 and $1m to fund Mr Clinton's presidential library in Arkansas.

It was part of an effort by the emirates, said a person close to UAE officials, to forge a close relationship with a former US president who is influential and highly regarded in the region.

Mr Clinton's admiration for the UAE was last on display in November, when he made his fourth visit to the American University in Dubai and met students participating in the Clinton scholarship programme.

The UAE has also contributed $100m to Hurricane Katrina relief funds – which Mr Clinton had a leading role in raising.

Mrs Clinton's tough stance that the deal represented an "unacceptable risk" to national security has caused UAE officials some consternation.

Regarded as the leading Democratic candidate for the 2008 presidential elections, she has used the deal – which polls show is disliked by most Americans – and the anti-Arab sentiment it sparked to attack the Bush administration on national security, an issue that has been seen as a weak point for Democrats.

Although Mrs Clinton has been careful not to criticise the UAE directly, her stance has put her in the same camp as legislators who openly accuse Dubai of helping to finance the September 11 terrorist attacks and deem the UAE untrustworthy.

Privately, some Democrats see the revelations about his ties to the UAE as a classic Clinton dilemma. Mrs Clinton told the New York Post on Thursday that she did not know her husband had been contacted by Dubai officials two weeks ago and offered them advice on the deal. Although both Hillary and Bill Clinton say he stands behind her on the issue and there is no direct conflict, his relationship to the UAE has complicated her political stance on the transaction.

Meanwhile, the UAE has sought to quell the backlash against the takeover by hiring some Clinton officials - and Republicans - to lobby on Dubai's behalf.

[Apocalypse]

[KrazyHorse]

Racism, xenophobia triumph once again in US politics:

Senator: UAE firm to transfer port operations to U.S. 'entity'

Sources: House, Senate leaders tell Bush deal appears dead

Thursday, March 9, 2006; Posted: 2:09 p.m. EST (19:09 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A United Arab Emirates-owned company has agreed to turn over all of its operations at U.S. ports to an American "entity," Sen. John Warner said Thursday.

Reading a statement from DP World on the Senate floor, Warner, a Virginia Republican, said the reason is "to preserve" the strong relationship between the UAE and United States.

The announcement comes after congressional leaders reportedly told President Bush that the deal for DP World to assume some operations at six U.S. ports appeared dead on Capitol Hill.

House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee, delivered the news to Bush during a meeting Thursday at the White House, two Republican sources said.

The leaders told the president they would pass measures to block the deal by veto-proof majorities, sources told CNN. Bush had threatened to veto any legislation that stopped the deal.

The UAE firm DP World's purchase of P&O, the British company that manages cargo and passenger terminals at ports on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, has stirred up intense opposition in Washington.

House Republicans are openly defying the president, apparently to prevent Democrats from outflanking them on national security and outsourcing issues as elections approach.(Questions about the deal answered)

The issue marks an unusual rift between Bush and House Republicans, who say they have received overwhelmingly negative comments from constituents. (Your e-mails: Should Bush change his mind?)

On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Committee essentially blocked the deal by voting 62-2 to insert an amendment into a $68 billion emergency supplemental funding bill for military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The bill also includes about $19 billion in disaster assistance for the Gulf Coast for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The measure could come before the full House next week when it is expected to pass by a similar large margin. The committee's approval was bipartisan, with Reps. Jim Moran, D-Virginia, and Jim Kolbe, R-Arizona, casting the only votes against it.

Rep. Jerry Lewis, R-California, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, worked with other GOP leaders to amend the spending bill.

Tensions between Bush, whose approval rating is near an all-time low, and Congress have been growing for some time, and the president's vow to veto the legislation angered many of his congressional allies.

"In politics ... sometimes the passions and the emotions can overwhelm any factual discussion," said John King, CNN's chief national correspondent.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/03/09/port.security/index.html

[Apocalypse]

Yeah, more views and no responses because some people just like to bash Bush and don't know what to do when it turns out to be the left.

[KrazyHorse]

Uh...doesn't look like FunBoy was bashing Bush. He was simply revelling in the divide in the Republican Party...

[DaShi]

My respect for Hillary just rose.

[Apocalypse]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
Uh...doesn't look like FunBoy was bashing Bush. He was simply revelling in the divide in the Republican Party...

Uh....the lead of the article was a quote bashing Bush....

[KrazyHorse]

The point of the article is not the WP taking a stand against the ports deal, but that both Dems and Repubs are against it.

The second paragraph is the head of the RNC agreeing with the Dem quoted in the first paragraph.

[Apocalypse]

My point is Clinton really started the whole thing.

[MrFun]

This is just rich -- people who oppose affirmative action complain when they are accused of being racist by those who support affirmative action.

And now we have another example of people labeling others racist or xeneophobic because they have other, legitimate reasons for opposing UAE government's taking over some of our port operations.

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Apocalypse
My point is Clinton really started the whole thing.

Your point is worthless. What the **** are you smoking that you can blame the current turmoil in the GOP on Clinton?

Personally, I think that Bush is 100% in the right on this.

Doesn't mean that I can't enjoy watching his ass get handed to him by his own party.