Lawmakers concerned about 'potential risks' of giving Saudi passengers fast-track status

Published March 28, 2013

FoxNews.com

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Republican lawmakers are voicing concern about the "potential risks" of a Department of Homeland Security decision granting "trusted traveler" status to airline passengers from Saudi Arabia. 

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, and six other lawmakers questioned the program in a letter Wednesday to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. 

They asked for "assurances" about whether Saudi applicants would receive proper screening before being enrolled and what steps would be taken to prevent terrorists from exploiting the system. They noted, as other critics of the decision have, that Saudi Arabia produced 15 of the 19 hijackers behind the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. 

"Certainly, despite our longstanding relationship with the Kingdom, there are potential risks in opening this program to Saudi Arabia that must be considered," they wrote. 

They noted that Saudi Arabia also was temporarily on a list of countries whose U.S.-bound travelers would face higher scrutiny following the attempted Christmas Day bombing in 2009. 

The Investigative Project on Terrorism issued a report last week on the department's under-the-radar announcement to expand the Global Entry program to Saudi Arabia -- which was first made by Napolitano after meeting in January with her Saudi counterpart. Any Saudi travelers cleared through the program will be able to bypass the normal customs line after providing passports and fingerprints. The status lasts for five years. Applicants are expected to undergo a thorough vetting before they are accepted. 

Only an exclusive handful of countries enjoy inclusion in the Global Entry program -- Canada, Mexico, South Korea and the Netherlands. According to the IPT, some officials were questioning why Saudi Arabia gets to reap the benefits of the program, when key U.S. allies like Germany and France are not enrolled. 

The lawmakers who wrote to Napolitano said they remain "vigilant for vulnerabilities that our enemies can exploit" to get inside U.S. borders. 

"Expanding Global Entry to high-risk countries may represent such a risk," they wrote.

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Tax bite sacks Flacco's status as NFL's highest-paid player

Not so fast, Joe Flacco — the Baltimore Raven might not be NFL’s highest-paid player after all.

The Super Bowl XLVII MVP and the Ravens agreed to a six-year, $120.6 million contract this week, earning the New Jersey native an estimated $20.1 million per year. But being the highest paid player and earning the most after taxes are two very different things, according to Americans for Tax Reform, a Washington-based organization that advocates a single, flat-rate income tax.

In selecting to remain with Baltimore, Flacco is now set to pay a combined marginal income tax rate of 51.98 percent, comprised of federal, Maryland and Baltimore County income tax rates, as well as the Medicare tax. And that doesn’t even include the so-called “jock tax,” or Flacco’s liability for games played out of state and other taxes levied against him, including Maryland’s property tax.

Had Flacco sought a contract in states like Florida, Tennessee and Texas, he would have saved $1.72 million on the total marginal tax liability, according to Americans for Tax Reform.

“Flacco may have the distinction of being the highest paid player in NFL history, but New Orleans Saints’ QB Drew Brees still earns more after-tax pay,” the organization said in a news release.

Brees’ contract, which was signed before last season, is a five-year, $100 million deal that pays roughly $20 million per season. But after applying the marginal combined tax rate of 49.4 percent to the quarterback’s contract, Brees stands to make $470,000 more after-tax pay than Flacco, the newly crowned “highest paid player” of the NFL.

“Consider how much more Brees will earn if Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal successfully eliminates the Pelican State’s income tax,” the release continues. “Don’t be surprised if players begin to consider their tax liabilities even more now when making the decision of which team to ultimately sign with.”

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