Lawmaker tries to block ports deal (Jerry Lewis)

A U.S. lawmaker said on Tuesday he would try to block a controversial deal for a Dubai company to manage facilities at U.S. ports by attaching an amendment to a must-pass spending bill for the Iraq war and hurricane relief. The move by House of Representatives Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, a California Republican, could set up a showdown with President George W. Bush, who has threatened to veto any legislation blocking the ports deal.

Lewis said he was crafting an amendment to be part of an emergency spending package for $70 billion for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and $19.8 billion for Gulf Coast hurricane relief. "I have heard from many of my constituents who have strong concerns about the possibility of foreign-owned companies managing U.S. ports. I have also heard from many of the members of my committee who have similar concerns," Lewis said.

"I have been working with the Republican leadership and relevant authorizing committee chairman to craft an amendment for the supplemental to address these concerns," he said. A deal under which Dubai Ports World took over the global assets of Britain-based P&O gave the state-owned Arab company control over managing some facilities at six major U.S. ports. It unleashed a political firestorm, with opponents charging it posed a potential security threat and the Bush administration agreed to an additional 45-day review of the deal.

(snip)
A spokesman for Lewis said the amendment still was being written, and it was unclear whether it would specifically target the Dubai ports deal or would more broadly address foreign-owned companies managing U.S. ports. The House Appropriations Committee was to start work on Wednesday to complete the emergency spending package to send it to the House floor later this month.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=newsOne&storyID=2006-03-07T212051Z_01_WBT004920_RTRUKOC_0_US-SECURITY-PORTS-BILL.xml
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