11/20/2018

CONGRESS/MEDIA/SAUDI ARABIA/TRUMP PEOPLE: “The White House statement that defended Saudi Arabia in the killing of dissident Jamal Khashoggi was attributed to President Donald Trump. But all Rand Paul heard when he read it was John Bolton…The Kentucky Republican doesn’t break with Trump much these days, but the president’s statement propping up American support for Saudi Arabia and its crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman, was too much for one of the president’s closest allies in Congress. Paul said he will redouble his efforts to block arm sales to Saudi Arabia, which Trump touted repeatedly in his statement raising doubts about whether bin Salman was at all involved in Khashoggi’s killing. So although Trump portrayed Saudi Arabia’s $110 billion plans to buy American arms as a massive jobs program, Paul said the president should reassess his approach to how he views the country’s relationship with Saudi Arabia. He said it’s not punishment to stop the arm sales, but instead an affirmation that the United States shouldn’t ‘reward’ Saudi Arabia for the ‘butchering of a dissident.’”

Burgess Everett, “Rand Paul breaks with Trump over Saudi support,” Politico, Nove,ber 20, 2018 4:54 pm