Former Sept. 11 Commission chairman blasts ports deal (Kean)

[sabra]

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/13953530.htm

Former Sept. 11 Commission chairman blasts ports deal


Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The former chairman of the Sept. 11 Commission blasted the offer by a United Arab Emirates company to run operations at six major U.S. seaports, saying it should never have been brokered in the first place.

"It shouldn't have happened, it never should have happened," Thomas Kean said Friday during a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

Kean, who also is a past governor of New Jersey, said the quicker the Bush administration can get out of the deal, the better. He also criticized the administration, saying "somebody has a tin ear over there."

"We're in a no-win situation," Kean said, referring to the United Arab Emirates. "There's no question that two of the 9/11 hijackers came from there and money was laundered through there."

[AntiFascist]

1. K & R This is significant n/t

[Tempest]

8. Much more significant than any of us can imagine

Kean is very well respected by conservatives and was given high grades by Democrats for his running of the 9/11 commission.

This should be the number one story on all the news shows tonight.

[WePurrsevere]

14. Although it would be very good if makes the news I have to wonder if Kean

will be "Swift boated".

Neo-Cons don't care about the truth or others. All they seem to care about is following "the RW agenda" and following BushCo and his cabal. IMO they're much worse then sheep... they're lemmings and all I can hope for is that they follow their "dear leader" over the edge (preferably into an abyss never to return again).

[Tempest]

16. I wouldn't count on Kean being swift-boated

Too many other prominent conservatives have come out against the sale.

Too many targets makes it too difficult to strike and there's too many targets which will strike back.

[WePurrsevere]

18. I hope you're right. There is power in numbers but it seems like many

conservatives can be bought (or blackmailed) into falling in with BushCo and other Repubs. Of course there are also those who are lemmings who blindly follow the Neo-Con lead whereever it goes.

[AndyA]

2. WOW!!! Kicked and nominated... n/m

[Pirate Smile]

3. I was wondering when we were finally going to hear from these guys.

Recommended.

[AntiFascist]

4. Powers that DU: get this to Lou Dobbs....

maybe he can sneak this in at top of his broadcast, if he isn't already.

[UpInArms]

5. Official: 15 of 19 Sept. 11 hijackers were Saudi

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2002/02/06/saudi.htm

02/06/2002

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia acknowledged for the first time that 15 of the Sept. 11 suicide hijackers were Saudi citizens, but said Wednesday that the oil-rich kingdom bears no responsibility for their actions.

Previously, Saudi Arabia had said the citizenship of 15 of the 19 hijackers was in doubt despite U.S. insistence they were Saudis. But Interior Minister Prince Nayef told The Associated Press that Saudi leaders were shocked to learn 15 of the hijackers were from Saudi Arabia.

"The names that we got confirmed that," Nayef said in an interview. "Their families have been notified."

Osama bin Laden — the chief suspect in the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks the killed more than 3,000 people — was Saudi born but stripped of his citizenship in 1994.

Asked if he had information on whether bin Laden was dead or alive, Nayef said: "We have no information and we have no interest in this subject."

<snip>

Nayef said that Saudi banks have not frozen any bank accounts. He also said that Saudi charities "won't be allowed by the state or those who work in them ... to be used for other purposes. But you cannot guarantee that a person or more could misuse" their responsibilities.

...more...

THAT IS 15 - not 2 - WHO IN THE WORLD IS FACTCHECKING THESE JOKERS??????

[never cry wolf]

11. 15 were Saudi's, 2 were from the UAE...n/t

[WePurrsevere]

13. Do you happen to know who the other two were? TIA n/t

:kick: & R

[never cry wolf]

15. Egypt and Lebanon

http://www.suntimes.com/special_sections/sept11/attacks/thehijackers.html

[WePurrsevere]

17. TY n/t

[Seen the light]

6. Kicked and recommended

This is great news.

[catmother]

7. K & R.

[MadMaddie]

9. I think it is major that he is speaking out...

but the * cabal never took the 9/11 commission seriously....We pretty much know they never really read the report!!

* is not going to back down he is going to push this to the end...we can only hope it is his political demise!!

[ginnyinWI]

12. They certainly never wanted that commission

I'll never forget Condi lying to them--I haven't believed a word she's said since!

The UAE port deal is all about * building up the family nest egg, Carlyle. It's all he cares about. We can only hope there are enough patriots in the Congress to stop him.

[otohara]

10. Kicking

[AntiFascist]

19. The 9-11 Report contemplated container shipments...

from page 392:

http://pdfhacks.com/911Report/911Report.pdf#page=388

The most powerful investments may be for improvements...such as scanning technologies designed to screen containers that can be transported by plane, ship, truck, or rail. Though such technologies are becoming available now, widespread deployment is still years away.

In the meantime, the best protective mesaure may be to combine improved methods of identifying and tracking the high-risk containers, operators, and facilities that require added scrutiny...

Wouldn't much of this be in the hands of shippers and port operators?

Also note that parts of the report suggesting terror links to the Saudi government and Saudi businessmen were blacked out. Saudi business has very close ties to the UAE, where much of the profits from oil are invested (or laundered):

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2003-08-01-911-report-saudi-link_x.htm

Still-secret parts of the congressional report into the Sept. 11 attacks examine interactions between Saudi businessmen and the royal family that may have intentionally or unwittingly aided al-Qaida or the suicide hijackers, according to people who have seen it.

At any rate, the commission chairman must know what he is talking about!

[Roland99]

20. Even my local, gung-ho Repub Congressman is against the deal

[wordpix]

21. so is mine--I couldn't believe it b/c Nancy Johnson works for BigPharma*