Senator Frist on the Issues: National Security

Sunday found Senator Bill Frist claiming credit for diffusing the hostilities of the deal with Dubai Ports World. According to BBC News, Senator Bill Frist had previously threatened to move a blocking law if the US government didn’t delay a deal with Dubai Ports World.

President Bush and the White House feel that the ports deal should go through although some people fear the deal is a threat to national security.

An article from the New York Times said that Frist took credit for the decision to allow 45 days for a national security review. Today’s White House press release explained some of Bush’s reasoning for his support of the ports deal.

“The President believes very strongly that we shouldn't be holding a company from an Arab country to a different standard than a company from Great Britain. So it's a principle that is involved here…It's also something that we have to look at in the broader context of our foreign policy and the war on terrorism that we're engaged in. The United Arab Emirates is a strong and good partner in the war on terrorism.”

While Bush feels strongly that the Dubai ports deal is not a risk for the US, Frist seems considerably more concerned, going so far as threatening to block the deal.