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Title: LOU DOBBS: "Out of all the terminals at our ports, 80 percent are already in foreign hands"
Source:
CNN.Com
URL Source: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0602/24/ldt.01.html
Published: Feb 24, 2006
Author: Lou Dobbs
Post Date: 2006-02-24 21:55:03 by Uncle Bill
Keywords: terminals, percent, already
Views: 58
Comments: 6
DOBBS: Should those key infrastructure assets, should be managed by U.S. firms? The U.S. government? SCHEMAN: Well, let's walk through it. The aviation industry ... DOBBS: Make it a quick walk. SCHEMAN: Well, the aviation industry took, what, a lot of money, something like $700 million that's only been on ports versus $20 billion on the aviation industry. So when we look at our ports, we're not spending money on security on ports yet. That's the big misnomer. We're putting in very basic infrastructure, not enough people, not enough assets. So the fact that we have foreign ownership of ports, 80 percent of our ports are already in foreign hands. DOBBS: Well, let's say that again. Out of all the terminals at our ports, 80 percent are already in foreign hands. SCHEMAN: Correct. Correct. So we are talking about something that's already happened. It's a fait accompli. What we are doing new is we're looking at a foreign government having control of very important port assets. DOBBS: And the issue, the distinction the president did not choose to make the distinction when asked about a UAE company and a British company. The British company, a public company, not associated with the British government. The Dubai Ports World owned by a government. SCHEMAN: Correct. DOBBS: The idea that this country, four years after September 11th, has wide open borders, and this administration refuses to secure them. SCHEMAN: Right. Absolutely. DOBBS: That we have ports that we're only watching about 4 percent of those containers being inspected. SCHEMAN: About 1 percent. DOBBS: It's 1 percent? SCHEMAN: It's a lot less than 4. And the equipment that is used to even look at the containers is antiquated equipment. We haven't updated our equipment in years. DOBBS: One last question. With 80 percent of control of those terminals in the hands of foreign companies, the ships that we would need, should there be a war, and should China, for example, or another major -- another country with significant shipping assets, if they decided to pull their ships out of our use, how would we move the material around? SCHEMAN: We'd be stuck. We'd be stuck. We'd be totally stuck. We do not have U.S. shipping anymore. So what is there to fill in the gap? You don't have U.S. shipping. U.S. port terminals are foreign- owned. DOBBS: And the United States, while our leaders talk about a dangerous dependency on foreign oil, have left us absolutely vulnerable in terms of shipping and ports. Lucy, thank you very much for being here. SCHEMAN: Than you so much. 
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#5. To: buckeroo (#0)
ping to port situation.
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