Posted on 03/20/2006 7:59:14 PM PST by Chickenhawk Warmonger
Not only did Sen. Chuck Schumer stir up the political firestorm against DP World at the behest of Eller & Co, but Schumer’s staff sent reporters on a wild goose chase for experts to back up his claims.
According to “Dubai or Not Dubai: Chuck on Killed Deal”, by Ben Smith and published by the New York Observer, Joe Muldoon III, a lobbyist for Eller & Co, “put together a white paper arguing that the deal could compromise US security”. In LATE JANUARY, a copy of the white paper was given to Schumer aide, Josh Vlasto. When Ted Bridis from the Associated Press contacted his office on Feb. 10, Schumer conveyed a “cautious, critical note.”
Adam Davidson of National Public Radio was unable to find any port-security experts that agreed with Schumer’s assertion about the negative impact of DP World on port security. Schumer’s office provided Davidson with names of two experts who they said agreed with the security threat theory. Davidson contacted both experts and both stated that there was NO security threat. Risa Heller, Schumer’s press secretary, stated they thought the two experts agreed with Schumer’s security concerns.
Meanwhile, Schumer “pressed the Senate to vote on the issue immediately before the White House could tamp down the furor.” The next day, DP World agreed to turn the US ports over to a US entity.
How does Schumer feel about the results of the ports deal? He stated “This gives Democrats a window that opens on other security issues.”
So let's review - no experts could be produced by Schumer that agreed with the security threat posed by DP World. Schumer knew about the ports deal in late January. Plus he viewed the uproar as a political antidote to the Democrats' lack of national security history. Despite this, the Republicans in Congress claim 'victory'.
ping
Thank you, Mo1.
Ping the list I sent you, CW.
beat the drum and repeat the lie. That is all they do.
There is a good reason why people who knew something about security, or ports, or Dubai did not fall for the hysteria.
Muldoon wrote Schumer's talking points.
Almost reminds me of that CBS fake documents .. when they had a hard time getting experts to agree with them
Click on the above link, go down to the bottom, count 9 paragraphs up, and see what Joe Muldoon III has to say.
DP World: how US politicians got in the way of the lawyers
"Because DP World had done everything properly, they probably thought they were safe," Rawlinson said. "But from a PR standpoint, perhaps they didn't see that it would gather steam that quickly."
Linklaters' Parr ponders this predicament. He claims that nothing could have been done earlier to gain the support of the US public. This is because, under the Exxon-Florio statute, the process to gain clearance from the CFIUS is confidential and, had the company spoken publicly about the process, it would have broken the law.
This placed DP World in a difficult position as the US Congress was quick to stir up trouble for the deal once it realised the level of public support for its opposition. Mid-term elections are looming on the political calendar in November, after all.
The first hint of trouble in the deal was, in fact, when one irate P&O shareholder piped up during a shareholder meeting on 13 February when the deal was approved, questioning whether, because DP World is based in Dubai, it has links to Al-Qaeda.
However, it was P&O's own bed-partner, Miami-based container terminal operator Eller & Co, which really sparked the political debate by launching legal action in Florida and London in an attempt to block the deal and flagging up its 'concerns' with US Senator Charles Schumer.
Schumer became one of the most vocal opponents of the takeover, at one stage questioning whether the US should be "outsourcing our own security". This is despite port security being managed by the US Coast Guard and US Customs, not the port operators.
Eller has a 50-50 joint venture agreement with P&O to operate the Miami Container Terminal, but has been in dispute with P&O over acquiring its shareholding in the joint venture.
As such, despite the UK Court of Appeal's rejection of Eller's petition to overturn the UK High Court's decision to approve the takeover, it still potentially has a lot to gain from DP World being forced to sell its US operations, including those in Miami.
But despite the now rather obvious commercial or political reasons behind the very public opposition to DP World's takeover of P&O, the outcome is still the same. DP World must sell its US operations, which are estimated to be worth $700m (£398.4m), and has called in the big guns for the sale, appointing New York heavyweight Sullivan & Cromwell as key adviser, assisted by Alston for US regulatory issues.
So it appears that the most crucial lesson to be learnt from the deal is that good PR might just be as invaluable as the right legal advice.
1850 Eller Dr Ste 403
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316-4201
pinging the group!
And of course, the FReepers who were opposed won't exactly care anyway. I wonder what it feels like to be cynically used by a Democrat.
The people who opposed the DPW deal on FR didn't give a damn about who was behind making sure a bunch of malevolent darkies were kept out of American ports.
The hostility against Muslims has morphed into a contempt and suspicion for all Arabs. That, at bottom, is what this is all about among the ignorant.
That DPW was stabbed in the back by a competitor is beside the point.
Great job, again!
If you and us here at FR and others in the real news media don't pay attention and keep this kind of stuff bumped to the top, nobody will.
So, BUMP!
...Washington lobbyist Joe Muldoon said he decided to lead the effort because one Eller executive "is an old friend of my family." Mr. Muldoon said he spent most of January researching the issue, and began making visits to Capitol Hill at the end of that month. "I just wanted to educate folks," he said, and to warn lawmakers that this was a deal that "might just slip through the cracks."
YES! Congratulations! A most successful ping!
Now, let me read your latest right after the replay concludes of POTUS's speech and Q@A today!
Thank you so much for all of your links! It really is helping me dig through the pile of muck! It's interesting to see how the statements from those involved get more and more hysterical as time passes. Just like the link you sent about Muldoon contradicting himself about the port security. It's amazing how some of these companies can continue to operate despite embezzlement, bankruptcy, etc.
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