Hillary Quiet About One Dubai Deal

While Hillary Clinton toured the country denouncing a controversial deal that would have allowed an Arab company to control American ports, she failed to mention that a firm operated by her top advisers was quietly lobbying for the same Arab company’s takeover of two U.S. defense plants.

Concerned over national security, the New York Senator vowed to block the spring deal which would have put Dubai Ports World, owned by the United Arab Emirates, in charge of all major U.S. ports. Clinton promised to do everything in her power to ensure there are no repeat attacks like the ones her state experienced on September 11, 2001, saying it meant “ensuring our ports are not turned over to foreign governments.”

At the same time, a lobbying/public relations firm called Glover Park Group was secretly helping–for a hefty $100,000 fee–Arab government-owned Dubai International Capital acquire an engineering firm that makes tank and aircraft turbines in Connecticut and Georgia. Evidently, this didn’t bother Clinton whose top advisers run Glover Park Group and collect hefty incomes from its annual profits.

Based in Washington D.C. and New York, Glover Park Group’s partners include Clinton insiders such as Howard Wolfson, Joe Lockhart and Gigi Georges. The firm’s web site says it offers crisis management services and has handled everything from a presidential impeachment – obviously referring to Bill Clinton – to a crippling antitrust action of one of the nation’s largest companies.

Glover Park has also represented the government of Turkey for thousands of dollars. The firm’s 2005 detailed lobbying income of more than $2 million lists the Clinton Group, which paid it $180,000, as one of its many clients.