A Second Look: Dems Outsmarted Again on Port Deal?

When I heard that President Bush is standing firm behind the decision to turn over some of the major USA ports to a company from United Arab Emirates in spite of protests from both sides of the aisle, I was shocked.

Said the President: "After careful review by our government, I believe the transaction ought to go forward..." Read the full AP story here.

In my last post, I opined that the President would make a big political mistake unless he stopped the deal.

However, the move may be very politically savvy. Karl Rove and the Republicans may have outsmarted the competition ... again.

My first clue was when Jimmy Carter came out and backed the President. Read the Miami Herald story about this here.

Consider this. George Bush is not very popular right now. However, he is not running for anything. He doesn't need to be popular. One thing Republican candidates do not need in 2006 is to be dragged down by the President's unpopularity. What's the answer? They need distance from George Bush and he just offered them the opportunity to distance themselves from him and at the same time steal an issue - port security - from the Democrats.

The Dems are in a box.

If they come out too strong against having an Arab country running a USA port, they risk being labeled as biased and bigots as Arab groups are charging now. Read the Reuters story about this here. The Dems have even argued that the President has caused terrorism because of his policies. Now that he has taken a stand that shows he is not prejudiced against Arabs, even Jimmy Carter, usually critic, is applauding the move.

However, if Dems running for office support the President, they lose their issue of Bush's handling of port security. They can't afford to agree with the President on anything about port security. If they do, they become a part of the problem. For example, John Kerry was never able to get past his vote for the Iraq war. He could never effectively criticize George Bush on Iraq since every time he did, the Republicans quickly reminded voters of the Kerry vote.

On the other hand, Republicans can safely criticize the President, as many have. Read about Bill Frist's criticism in an AP story here. First, they gain distance from Bush for the 2006 elections, and most important, they can lead the charge to secure our ports without losing anything. The Republican base is solidly behind protecting the country regardless of how its done and post 9-11, to many independent voters, having our ports run by anyone but Americans just doesn't make sense.

Stay tuned.

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A Bush Blunder on Port Security?

Opposition is growing in Washington and throughout the country to a sale that is in the works where a company from the United Arab Emirates would take over some of the operations of six of the USA's largest ports. (New York, New Jersey, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New Orleans and Miami)

A committee created by Congress that is made up of Bush administration officials from Treasury, Commerce, Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and the Department of Defense gave the plan it's blessing. Now, only the President can stop the deal. DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff on the right.

Where have Karl Rove and George Bush's other political advisers been on this one? Unless the President nixes the plan - and fast - the Dems will surely jump on the port security issue even more than they already have to enhance their chances of taking back Congress and the presidency.

Sen. Evan Bayh, a moderate Indiana Democrat, and a possible presidential contender, wasted no time to speak out:

"I think we've got to look into this company. I think we've got to ensure ourselves that the American people's national-security interests are going to be protected... And frankly, I think the threshold ought to be a little higher for a foreign firm. There can't be a choice between profits and protecting the American people."

You can read about it here via the Washington Times.

Cheney on the Texas Accident

The MSM is salivating over VP Dick Cheney's hunting accident in Texas. This should not be a big story. It is sad for the person injured in the accident and for Dick Cheney. But - accidents happen.

The White House Press corps is having a cow because they were not told about the accident until the day after it happened. Guess what - the VP was hunting on private property without press people on a weekend. He was not on official business. After the accident, the VP was more concerned about the person who was hurt and his family - not the MSM. Bravo to him.

To clear the muddy waters, the VP was interviewed today on Fox News' Special Report by host Brit Hume.

It's a very good interview and you can read the full transcript here.

Verichip Controversy Continues

The Verichip has made it to the United States.

An Ohio employer has implanted electronic ID tags called Verichips in employees, although the practice is voluntary. Read the UPI story about that here.

(The Verichip is a human-implantable RFID microchip. You can read about the Verichip here.)

The UPI story reports that some are concerned about the practice. Liz McIntyre, who is opposed to the use of identification technology says:

"There are very serious privacy and civil liberty issues of having people permanently numbered."

In addition, some Christians fear that human implants are the "Mark of the Beast" mentioned in the Book of Revelation in the Bible. "

Revelation Chapter 13:16 - 17 (KJV)

"16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name."

For more on the "Mark of the Beast" click here.

“Crucifixin's” Out

Britney Spears will not be in the cooking segment scene titled “Crucifixin's” in a future episode of NBC's “Will & Grace” after all. See the Powerline post about the latest news here and my previous post about that here.

NBC must have felt the heat from Bible believing Christians.

Cross on Hot Cross Buns Banned

This has got to be the most ridiculous story of the day.

The cross is "off" hot cross buns in a school in England because they are "religiously offensive".

Read the full UPI story here.

"Scooter" Libby Update

"Scooter" Libby's trial for obstruction of justice was set by a federal judge for January 8, 2007. Read the full store here.

This is bad news for Dems because the trial will be held after the 2006 elections and they will be unable to make much political hay out of it.

I would guess that this may end in a plea deal or possibly the charges will be dropped since some lawyers say that the charges will be difficult to prove. Also, Libby has already paid a tremendous price for what the prosecutor is calling a misdeed.

Or - how about a presidential pardon?

Christians Outraged About Episode of "Will and Grace"

April 13th, the night before Good Friday, NBC will air an episode of Will and Grace with Britney Spears as guest star that offends Christians.

"Jack's fictional network, Out TV, is bought by a Christian TV network, leading to Spears contributing a cooking segment called 'Cruci-fixin's.'" Read the AP story here.

(For those of you not exposed to the Gospel, Jesus was crucified on Good Friday. He died so our sins can be forgiven. For more on crucifixion and the significance to Christians, read about it here on Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.)

Donald E. Wildmon, Founder and Chairman of the American Family Association is calling for a protest. Read about it here.

If something similar were produced about the heart of any other religion, it most likely would be labeled as "hate" by the MSM. Hopefully, this episode will go the way of NBC's The Book of Daniel.


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