Matthews cut short Schumer quote, omitting gist of Schumer's concern over ports deal

Written by Raphael Schweber-Koren

Published

Chris Matthews cropped a quote by Sen. Charles Schumer to suggest that Schumer had simply denied that his concerns about the Bush Administration's ports deal arose from any “anti-Arab suspicion.” Schumer, as quoted by Matthews, said that his concern about the ports agreement “is not because the UAE is an Arab country.” However, in Schumer's next sentence, which Matthews left out, Schumer spelled out the reason for his concern about the agreement -- he said it was “because the UAE has had involvements with terrorism.”


On the nationally syndicated Chris Matthews Show, during a discussion of whether racism is a motivation for critics of a deal to allow a company owned by the government of Dubai -- a member state of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) -- to manage terminals at six U.S. ports, host Chris Matthews cropped a quote by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) to suggest falsely that the senator had simply denied -- without explanation -- that his concerns about the deal arose from any “anti-Arab suspicion,” as Matthews put it. Schumer, as quoted by Matthews, said that his concern about the ports agreement “is not because the UAE is an Arab country.” However, in Schumer's next sentence, which Matthews left out, Schumer spelled out the reason for his concern about the agreement -- he said it was “because the UAE has had involvements with terrorism.”

The 9/11 Commission has previously detailed possible connections between UAE officials and Osama Bin Laden before September 11, 2001.

Schumer's comments were reported on the February 21 broadcast of the NBC Nightly News by NBC News correspondent Chip Reid:

ARSALAN IFTIKHAR (national legal director, Council on American-Islamic Relations): The message that this sends from the politicians is, you know, no Arabs or Muslims need apply.

REID: Critics of the deal say that's nonsense.

SCHUMER: This is not because the UAE is an Arab country. This is because the UAE has had involvements with terrorism.

From the February 26 broadcast of the syndicated Chris Matthews Show:

MATTHEWS: This week's port fight was yet another east-west culture clash, with Congress railing against an Arab takeover of America's ports. Some specifically denied that that had anything do with anti-Arab suspicion. Here's Senator Chuck Schumer of New York:

SCHUMER [video clip]: This is not because the UAE is an Arab country.

MATTHEWS: That's what he said, but what did Arabs across the Middle East hear? It reminds me of a scene from George Clooney's hot political thriller, Syriana. Here's Matt Damon, as the ugly American:

[begin video clip from Syriana (2005)]

DAMON: But why would you need an economic advisor? Twenty years ago, you had the highest GNP [gross national product] in the world. Today, you're tied with Albania, so good work. Your second-biggest export is second-hand goods, followed closely by dates, for which you lose 5 cents a pound. Do you want to know what the business world thinks of you? We think a hundred years ago, you were living out here in tents in the desert chopping each other's heads off, and that's exactly where you're going to be in another hundred.

UNNAMED MALE: Why don't you tell me something I don't already know.

[end video clip]

MATTHEWS: Well, the great irony in that scene is that Matt Damon, like a lot of the critics of this port deal, was putting down the wrong Arabs, the ones with real plans for their countries.