CIA/MEDIA/SAUDI ARABIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not want to listen to an audio recording of the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi despite facing mounting pressure to punish Saudi Arabia for the killing. Khashoggi was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, and Turkey has given the U.S. government a recording of the murder, but Trump said he would not listen to it “because it’s a suffering tape, it’s a terrible tape’…Trump also said he wants to maintain a close alliance with Saudi Arabia despite Khashoggi’s death and questioned the alleged role of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is known as MbS and is the kingdom’s de facto ruler…Trump said on Saturday [11-17-18] that the CIA assessment was ‘very premature’ and in the interview that aired on Sunday [11-18-18] he said it may never be possible to know who ordered Khashoggi’s murder. Trump faces intense pressure from senior Democratic and Republican lawmakers to take tougher action against Saudi Arabia. Some have said Trump should suspend arms sales to the kingdom and drop his support for MbS, but Trump has so far resisted that pressure.”
–Reuters, “Trump Does Not Want to Hear Tape of ‘Vicious’ Khashoggi Murder,” The New York Times online, November 18, 2018