Sheiks bail out Bush again

This isn't the first time Arab Sheiks friendly to the Bush family have bailed dubya out but it is certainly the most public.
Dubai Port Company to Divest Itself of American Holdings

The United Arab Emirates company that was attempting to take over management operations at six U.S. ports said today that it will divest itself of all U.S. port interests.

The decision came several hours after Republican congressional leaders met with President Bush and told him that Congress appeared ready to block the takeover by Dubai Ports World, a deal that has generated fierce opposition on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill but has been defended by the administration.


"Because of the strong relationship between the United Arab Emirates and the United States and to preserve this relationship, DP World has decided to transfer fully the U.S. operations of P&O Ports North America, Inc. to a United States entity," Edward H. Bilkey, chief operating officer for Dubai Ports World, said in a statement released this afternoon. "This decision is based on an understanding that DP World will have time to effect the transfer in an orderly fashion and that DP World will not suffer economic loss."

The company's decision was first announced shortly before 2 p.m. on the floor of the Senate by Sen. John Warner (R-Va.), who had been trying to broker a compromise on the issue.

Make no mistake, Bush has still been seriously wounded. We have been saying that Bush/Rove couldn't govern but they sure could do politics. Well they can't even do the politics anymore. Steve Soto sums up the situation with a question or two.

Look, this was a colossal blunder from a cabal that was used to having its way with Congress. How could these guys, weeks after Rove boasted about how the GOP would ram national security down the throats of the Democrats this fall, allow its own committee overseeing foreign investments to rubber stamp a deal that would destroy that whole narrative? And how could the White House assume that a lame veto threat would scare its own party incumbents to allow a transaction that would position Nancy Pelosi to their right on national security?

While the Republican lawmakers can take some credit for halting the deal and standing up to Bush they are still hurt because a damaged Bush is bad for them in November. They have been riding to victory on Bush's coat tails and now those coat tails have become boat anchors.