BILL CLINTON CLARIFIES ROLE IN DUBAI PORTS WORLD DEAL

Charges that Bill Clinton, in opposition to his wife Hillary, consulted with the United Arab Emirates about how to get the Dubai Ports World deal through are untrue, according to the Big Dog.

Separately, former President Bill Clinton, at a news conference in Harlem, answered questions about his role in the ports deal. He said news reports that he had worked to support approval of the deal were "not true," and said that he shared the views of his wife, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, that the United States should block the takeover.

Mrs. Clinton co-sponsored legislation that would prevent the acquisition of any port operations by companies that are owned by foreign governments. She also called for a more thorough review of the DP World deal and repeatedly inveighed against the security threat that the takeover might represent.

But Mr. Clinton also confirmed that he had advised Dubai on the modernization of its economy and that he had given some advice to the country about how to respond to the uproar over the deal.

"I had one phone conversation with them, in which I said I thought there would be enormous public opposition and I couldn't understand why they'd want to operate the ports given the poor state of port security and the recent Congressional committee reports criticizing the homeland security program," Mr. Clinton said.

"The only advice I gave them, the only thing I said," he continued, "is if you are determined to press ahead with us, do not try to jam it through. Submit it to full review, and offer proposals to increase port security."

Tags: Bill Clinton, Dubai Ports World