You knew it wasn't quite over yet.

Source

And the port mess continues.

The Bush administration secretly required a company in the United Arab Emirates to cooperate with future U.S. investigations before approving its takeover of operations at six American ports, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press. It chose not to impose other, routine restrictions.

Hey, foreign oil conglomerates! For a mere $6.8 billion (and a little agreement about handing over business records on demand), you, too, can own your very own near-mint condition American port, and if you act now, we won't require that keep your records--that's right, the ones we can demand from you--on American soil so they won't be subject to court orders!

What I don't understand is that if Bush was "unaware of the pending sale until the deal had already been approved by the administration," then why does he even care so much about it?

Bush on Tuesday brushed aside objections by leaders in the Senate and House. He pledged to veto any bill Congress might approve to block the agreement, but some lawmakers said they still were determined to capsize it.

And just to prove that the "money talks in Washington" saying is probably still in effect:

Dubai Port's top American executive, chief operating officer Edward H. Bilkey, said the company will do whatever the Bush administration asks to enhance shipping security and ensure the sale goes through. Bilkey said Wednesday he will work in Washington to persuade skeptical lawmakers they should endorse the deal; Senate oversight hearings already are scheduled.

"We're disappointed," Bilkey told the AP in an interview. "We're going to do our best to persuade them that they jumped the gun. The UAE is a very solid friend, as President Bush has said."

Do congressmen still take checks, or these days, do they get shiny ATM cards and Post-It notes attached with messages like, "Take as much as you need, buddy! A pleasure doing business with you!"

Another funny (but not of the "ha ha" variety) aspect of this is that, routinely, when a foreign market has a potential industrial sale going on with the U.S., then an American executive is designated to help accommodate with U.S. requests, but in this case, while the administration asked for someone to be designated, they didn't specify that person's citizenship. That's setting off alarms in Congress, even with Republicans.

Senate and House leaders urged the president to delay the takeover, which is set to be finalized in early March. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee said the deal raised "serious questions regarding the safety and security of our homeland." House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., asked the president for a moratorium on the sale until it could be studied further.

Of course, Condi has been switched to "cheery Mary Poppins" mode.

In Saudi Arabia, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the agreement was thoroughly vetted. "We have to maintain a principle that it doesn't matter where in the world one of these purchases is coming from," Rice said Wednesday. She described the United Arab Emirates as "a good partner in the war on terrorism."

How she kept a straight face while saying that is beyond me.

Unfortunately, this isn't the last of this shady deal, so expect more to come from the Associated Press within the next day, if not the next few hours.