As the story unfolds, it is perhaps important to gain some perspective on the underlying facts and historical context of the United Arab Emirates based Dubai Ports World (DPW) since its takeover of London based Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. (P&O;), before political allegiances and commercial interests totally obscure the main issues at hand. In addition, the capacity of the United States Coast Guard to employ national security processes at U.S. ports of entry has come under much scrutiny, not only since said the proposed deal was unveiled to the American people, but as far back as September 11, 2001.

On March 5, 2006, CBS television news magazine, 60 Minutes, featured a report titled, “Hospitals: Is the Price Right?” The piece concentrated on the soaring costs of hospital care, specifically for uninsured Americans and the exponentially higher charges they are billed, which can be up to four times more than the same services directly billed to health insurance companies. The information was valid and fairly detailed regarding such costs, largely based upon information provided by patient advocate and community activist, K.B. Forbes, known for his Spanish language radio talk show out of Los Angeles, CA and also known as former press secretary for Conservative, Pat Buchanan. Forbes is the Executive Director of the Council for United Latinos, his small organization in East Los Angeles, where he has been taking on major hospitals across the United States regarding their unfair billing practices since 2000.

Effective on July 1, 2006, it will be more difficult for U.S. students to both become eligible for and borrow federally subsidized student loans, due to legislation signed by President Bush in February 2006. Known as the Budget-Deficit Reduction Bill, it wipes out $12 billion from the federal student loan program. The interest rates will climb to a fixed rate of 6.8 % for a student applying for a federal loan, referred to as the Stafford Loan program, with a capped rate of 8.5% for parents applying on behalf of their child, known as PLUS loans, also subject to additional variable rates. Many parents are considering home equity loans as an alternative, which provide far lower borrowing interest rates.

Since 2003, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has provided funding for states and urban areas across the country, under its Homeland Security Grant Program, in an effort to improve emergency preparedness, at the local level, in the event of a terrorist attack. Such funding has been available through two types of programs known as the State Homeland Security Grant Program (SHSGP) and the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI). Both types of funds have consisted of myriad formulas and application requirements which have caused disputes between members of the United States Congress as well as between state governors regarding the amount of allocations doled out, both in the past and presently.

The date of April 15th is a date not necessarily fondly referred to by a good many Americans, because it is representative of more anxiety than delight. Nor does the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) elicit terms of endearment even for those who might enjoy an income tax refund upon filing their tax returns each year. But it is specifically the preparation of tax filing which has become ever more complex over the years which continues to lead many filers to third party tax preparers, such as accounting firms and tax preparation services. In order to adequately abide by requirements in the convoluted IRS Code, trust has been extended to tax professionals by many taxpayers in order to avoid the risk of mistakes being made.

In the midst of numerous proposals before the Senate regarding legislation concerning the legalization of illegal aliens has arisen a little known provision of the recently signed 2005 Deficit Reduction Act. On February 8, 2006, President George Bush executed a bill into law which now requires recipients of Medicaid benefits to provide either an original birth certificate or passport in order to apply for or to continue to receive their health care benefits, commencing July 1, 2006.

It was in his 2003 State of the Union Address that President George W. Bush expressed his administration’s objective to “strengthen global treaties banning the production and shipment of missile technologies.” It was thereafter, between 2003 and 2004, in which the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) allowed the last manufacturer in the U.S. that provided a key element instrumental in cruise missile guidance, to be relocated to the Peoples’ Republic of China.

The silence on Capitol Hill has been deafening. On April 28, 2006 the White House announced the approval by President George Bush regarding the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) of its recommendation that Dubai International Capital LLC (DIC), a subsidiary of Dubai Holding and a Dubai government owned conglomerate, to assume the U.S. operations of Doncasters Group Ltd.

The United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and its Aviation Sub-Committee held a hearing on May 9, 2006 similar to that of the February 8, 2006 hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Aviation Sub-Committee. Both were in regard to the proposed Open Skies Agreement between the European Union and the U.S. This latest hearing comes on the heels of newly proposed language from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) concerning the foreign ownership of and investment in U.S. airlines.

As the United States Senate and President George Bush try to come to some understanding of what is needed to properly address the illegal entry of non-resident aliens to the United States, for the 12 to 20 million illegal aliens already residing in the U.S., the issue of existing false documentation has yet to be honestly addressed. But proposed legislation in the Senate leading to a path of legal residency and ultimately citizenship for those illegal aliens presently residing in the U.S. would involve presentation of proof of identity and length of residency.