[Peace-discuss] Dubai ports racism

[Ricky Baldwin]

In case you didn't catch this one, here's an
interesting exchange from CNN Feb. 28 on the Dubai
ports and how much racism is involved in the debate. -
Ricky

[...]

DOBBS: My next guest says that anyone opposing the
Dubai Ports World deal, he might be suspicious of
their racism. He says protests against the deal are
racist, anti-Arab, an attack against the United Arab
Emirates.

Writing in the "Baltimore Sun," James Zogby declared,
quote, "Smearing all things Arab remains the last
acceptable form of ethnic bigotry in America," end
quote.

James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute.
Good to have you here.

JAMES ZOGBY, PRES., ARAB AMERICAN INSTITUTE: Thanks,
Lou. You overstate my case a bit. Actually, you
overstate it quite a bit.

DOBBS: OK. Why don't you understate it? I was just
quoting this -- the Baltimore ...

ZOGBY: There can be a very legitimate debate about
this deal and about national security and about port
security in particular. We ought to be having that
discussion. Actually, I was on Wolf Blitzer's "LATE
EDITION" on Sunday, and the senators who were on right
before me, Feinstein and Kay Bailey Hutchison, had an
excellent debate about the issues of port security and
what we need to do.

But I've listened to Frank Lautenberg and Rick
Santorum and Chuck Schumer and Peter King, and I've
listened to radio talk show hosts. And they've been
using shameful language...

DOBBS: Like what? Like what, Jim?

ZOGBY: Like rogue government, like -- that's language
we've used for Iran in the past. Like ties to Islamic
fascism. Like I give this deal to the devil, and
comparing the devil with Dubai.

DOBBS: Let's take that line alone.

ZOGBY: These are outrageous comments that shouldn't be
made.

DOBBS: Well, should it be pointed out...

ZOGBY: Sure.

DOBBS: ... that the United Arab Emirates was a fulcrum
and a distribution point, a broker, if you will, in
its banking for money that went to terrorists for
technology, nuclear technology that ultimately ended
up in Iran, in Libya, in North Korea? That they have
voted approximately -- I think they've voted against
the United States, this great ally, as the
administration wants to point out. This ally has not
even voted 10 percent of the time with the United
States in the United Nations.

ZOGBY: Well, let's start with the money issue. The
fact is, is that as much money that came from the UAE
and came simply funneled through banks there, also
came through American credit card companies here,
where a number of these terrorists had credit cards
and maxed out.

Banks do not do security checks before they let you
open an account and before they let you write money.

DOBBS: Let me back up.

ZOGBY: No, let me finish. Let me finish.

DOBBS: No, let me interrupt, and then I will let you
interrupt me.

ZOGBY: Sure.

DOBBS: The point is that that money actually moved
from the United Arab Emirates to the United States to
support some of those, most of those terrorists.

ZOGBY: And interestingly enough, like I said, many of
these guys had credit cards that they maxed out on
borrowing money from American banks that they never
were able to pay back, and the operational training
and recruitment of this group happened in Germany. Is
Germany a hub for terrorism? Is Germany a country we
want to do business with?

DOBBS: To the degree -- to the degree that it harbors
radical Islamist terrorists, the German government,
just as the United States government, has to take
responsibility.

ZOGBY: And we do. After 9/11, we've put in some
security procedures...

DOBBS: Absolutely.

ZOGBY: ... that we were lax on. Germany has done the
same. And you know what? The UAE has done the same,
which is one of the reasons why they are not only
compliant right now, fully compliant, with what we've
asked them to do, but Tommy Franks calls them a vital
ally, as do many other generals who served there.

DOBBS: Forgive me, I am not interested -- I'll be
honest with you -- in this debate right now. ZOGBY:
Sure.

DOBBS: This administration and its representatives
said that there were no concerns raised about port
security by any agency or office in the CFIUS review.
Turns out that was not true. This administration says
-- this president says he will veto any legislation to
block this deal, when he'd only found out about the
process a few days before.

So let us move back to the racism issue, the idea that
it's acceptable bigotry, Jim, in this country -- and I
know that you have a responsibility with the
Arab-American Institute -- I don't think that you
would find anything more than the lunatic fringe who
would think that any kind of bigotry is acceptable in
this country. And I want to say to you...

(CROSSTALK)

DOBBS: I want to say to you, we've got really serious
issues to deal with here.

ZOGBY: We do.

DOBBS: And the suggestion, the suggestion that it's
Arab bigotry to try to move forward a discussion on
national security -- I mean, my gosh, do you really
think that adds anything to the desperate need for a
national public debate here?

ZOGBY: Lou, if you'll allow me...

DOBBS: I will.

ZOGBY: The issue here is the comments made by the
senators I noted were, in fact, over the top. And
because it's an Arab country, there's a sense that
everything is fair game and everything is allowable,
because there's no accountability. You couldn't say
these things about other governments, and that's what
I was objecting to.

Let's not overstate my case here. We have to have a
debate about national security, and we're going to
have a review of this deal. But let us not use
language that is shameful, irresponsible and ill-
informed in much of the rhetoric, as you would
admit...

DOBBS: I'm giving you an opportunity, Jim, to retract
what you're saying. I made an overstatement. I'm
quoting you. Quote, "smearing all things Arab..."

ZOGBY: Yes.

DOBBS: ... remains the last acceptable form of ethnic
bigotry in America." End quote. You don't say the
senator said it. You don't say some crazy talk show
host said it.

ZOGBY: Lou, that's one quote out of a larger article
in which I made the case, and I made it in the nuanced
way that I'm making it right now. Do not put words in
my mouth. I won't... DOBBS: I'm not putting words in
your mouth. I'm quoting your words.

ZOGBY: ... put them in yours -- yes, and I want you to
quote the whole article. Actually, we could sit here
and read my article, if you want. I think it was an
excellent article, and I'm very proud of it.

DOBBS: I think it's a terrific article.

ZOGBY: And I'm proud of the response that I got.

DOBBS: But you tell me...

ZOGBY: The fact is, is that...

DOBBS: Would you qualify that sentence by saying for
some...

ZOGBY: I qualified it in the article, Lou.

DOBBS: OK.

ZOGBY: Look, here's the point. This debate is being
listened to all over the world, and it's not our
finest hour. And it's also being listened to here at
home, which is one of the reasons why we have the rage
in the street that we have. I just got an e-mail from
a member of our organization, who was at dinner with
his wife in a restaurant in New York, and people were
talking about Arabs.

He went over and he said, look, my wife is an Arab,
and this is very hurtful conversation. The woman
turned back to him and said, "You killed 3,000 of our
people in New York. Why don't you get out of this
restaurant?"

The point here is that there is a concern in my
community about bigotry. There's a concern in the Arab
business community.

DOBBS: Your community -- your community is part of our
community, and we're going to look after every
community...

ZOGBY: Exactly.

DOBBS: ... every ethnic group in this country.

ZOGBY: And therefore, do not use language over the
top. That's all.

DOBBS: Who is? Are you suggesting I am?

ZOGBY: I never said you did. But I did mention the
senators...

DOBBS: Let me say one thing on this issue...

ZOGBY: I did mention the senators...

DOBBS: I heard more outrage toward this
administration, this government and its failure to
dutifully examine the impact of this deal on national
security, and I haven't heard a word about, as you put
it, Arabs or Arab-Americans. First of all,
Arab-Americans are Americans. Right?

ZOGBY: They are, and in fact they're longshoremen too
right now. We have got a whole bunch of them working
there, and I don't want them being unduly scrutinized.

DOBBS: Oh, my gosh. Well, you know what? The issue
here is scrutinizing our national security.

ZOGBY: Exactly, and I agree with you that we ought to.

DOBBS: You got it. And by the way, there isn't Arab
bigotry permitted in this country or embraced by
anyone that I know of, and I hope that you will
continue to qualify that comment, as you did so
respectfully in your article.

ZOGBY: Lou, look at the comments made by the senators
that I was referring to. Listen to what the radio talk
show hosts are doing. They are inflaming passions and
preying off of fear, creating a backlash that I think
is very dangerous, and is having a consequence in
terms of our ability to deal with and do business in
the Middle East.

Look, the last best friends we've got in the Middle
East are the business community, and they are thinking
twice right now about whether capital ought to go
where risk and controversy follows. It is not in our
national interests...

DOBBS: Hopefully, then, the American investors won't
be too concerned about investing in the Middle East,
where there is considerably more risk and considerable
-- considerably more prejudice.

ZOGBY: I don't want to see isolationism...

DOBBS: We've got to break, we've got to break, Jim...

ZOGBY: ... and I hope you don't either.

DOBBS: I'm sorry, we're out of time. Thank you very
much for being here. Come back soon. We'll all --
we'll have you some more.

ZOGBY: Have me and I'll come back, Lou.

DOBBS: You got it.

ZOGBY: Thanks.

DOBBS: Coming up at the top of the hour here on CNN,
"THE SITUATION ROOM and Wolf Blitzer -- Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Lou. We're going to
have a lot more on the port story as well, and we're
also following what's happening in Iraq. Dozens of
people killed after a curfew is lifted. Are U.S.
troops right now standing in the middle of what could
turn out to be a civil war? We'll ask some of the hard
questions.

Also, following another story. The former Taliban
spokesman, now a student at Yale. How did he get a
green card into the United States while others are
sitting at Guantanamo Bay? We're on the trail.

[...]

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