Rep. Brown-Waite responds to my LTTE:

"I was watching C-Span this morning and was shocked and disgusted by your absurd display of partisan pettiness. You stood up in objection to designating the boyhood home of William Jefferson Clinton as a historic landmark. This is a standard honor for those who served in this office.

For you to take issue with this legislation is beyond the pale, when you seem to serve only as a rubber-stamp for this Administration on issues of real importance.

To stand up in the House of Representatives and claim that Bill Clinton "brokered" the Dubai ports deal is embarrassing to me, as one of your unhappy constituents. You should be ashamed. All other speakers, Republican and Democrat, support this. You are alone in this; maybe you should wonder why.

I can only hope your taking your personal dislike for Mr. Clinton to the floor like that, and in the process wasting the Congress' valuable time, will come back to haunt you on election day."

Dear ___,

Thank you for your recent correspondence about former President Clinton and the Dubai Ports World deal. I appreciate the opportunity to respond to your comments.

As you know, since you personally wrote to me to share your concerns, the Dubai Ports World port sale has elicited much alarm among Americans everywhere. In taking over the British company through the buyout, Dubai Ports World would now be managing and operating six ports in areas such as New York , Baltimore , New Orleans , and Miami . Aside from the fact that another country would have any say in operation of our ports, U.S. officials have long suspected that the United Arab Emirates has ties to terrorist organizations and that the country has been a transfer point for shipment of nuclear materials to Iran and North Korea. As I already shared with you, I immediately wrote to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff, Department of Treasury Secretary Snow, and President Bush calling for an investigation of the deal. America 's security is not something we should sell to a United Arab Emirates-owned company for the sake of financial gain.

Because of my position on this issue, you can imagine how shocked I was to read in the news that former President Bill Clinton has a close relationship with the United Arab Emirates and advised the company on this deal. The crown prince of Dubai reportedly contributed to his presidential library and pays Mr. Clinton $300,000 per speech. Mr. Clinton is also a senior advisor to an American company in close partnership with the Dubai Investment Group.

I felt my constituents, outraged over this deal, deserved answers from the former President about his involvement in the deal, how much money he made from it, and the depth and breadth of his connections to the country. As such, when the House of Representatives moved to pass H.R. 4192, a bill to designate President Clinton's birthplace home as a historic landmark, I objected. This was not a partisan attack, and I must point out that I do not oppose this bill - I appreciate the opportunity to honor our nation's leaders and their service to our country. However, I could not in good conscience move to spend $1 million a year in taxpayer money on this initiative until President Clinton gave Americans the answers they deserved. Further, I must point out that designating a former president's birthplace as a historic landmark is not a standard honor; only 32 presidents have been so honored. Former Presidents George Bush and Ronald Reagan! n whose service to our nation predated President Clinton's have not had legislation recognizing their birthplaces.

Thankfully, Mr. Clinton did respond and answer ed my questions in the media. Americans deserve serious answers to these serious questions, and I am proud to have accomplished this by calling for a serious debate on the bill.

Sincerely,

Ginny Brown-Waite
Member of Congress