Port This

Judges Summary:

When it comes to grandstanding, Frist is hard to beat.  The judges loved the shot of Long Beach, especially the Queen Mary below.  Now that’s a terror target if we ever saw one.  Also, the fly boy theme — reminiscent of President Bush’s Katrina/New Orleans fly over — works brilliantly.  The only thing missing is the Commander-in-Chief bomber jacket.

Compared to the Menendez entry, Frist also earns points for audacity. As a Democrat, Menendez would have given his Capitol parking spot for just about any national security issue to get behind.  As the Republican Senate Majority leader, on the other hand, Frist scores big for turning on the White House and shoving the port security issue right down Bush’s veto threatening throat.  Maybe the Bush family and their friends are in bed with Dubai.  Maybe Bush screwed up by taking Congress for granted.  Either way, Frist and the Repubs seem to have officially kicked Bush into lame duck status as the Prez finds himself in another “Harriet Miers moment.”

Regarding the Menendez shot, the props are just excellent.  It’s brilliant how the detailed port layouts seem like an open invitation to the evil doers.  And why limit threat-mongering just to shipping cargo?  These pix show the physical plant just as ripe for aerial assault.  Loved the plethora of microphones, by the way, indicating Bob is one big mouthpiece.

Finally, we liked the drama in the Foley picture.  Unfortunately, the style is a little dated — say, “Morning In America,” or the “’01-’04 ‘Keep 9/11 Alive’ Patriotism Orgy.”  Next time, though, would it be so hard to also toss in a crane, a bit of water or even a buoy?

(image 1:Genaro Molina/AP. Pool.  February 21, 2006.  Long Beach, CA.  Via YahooNews.  image 2: Jose F. Moreno/A.P.  February 21, 2006.  Port Authority of New York and New Jersey,  Newark, N.J.  Via YahooNews. image: Marc Serota/Reuters. February 21, 2006.  Port of Miami.  Miami, Florida  Via YahooNews.)