Democrat and Republican Senators Slam Trump Administration After Briefing on Saudi Arabia: ‘Outrageous’

Ken MeyerNov 28th, 2018, 1:36 pm
 

On Wednesday, a bipartisan group of Senators condemned the Trump administration following a briefing on Saudi Arabia and Yemen following the gruesome killing of Jamal Khashoggi — demanding further information from the CIA.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary James Mattis briefed the lawmakers on Khashoggi’s death, and while they reportedly defended President Donald Trump‘s decision to side with Saudi Arabia, they did not express the president’s skepticism of the CIA assessment that the Saudi Crown Prince ordered the killing. CIA director Gina Haspel was conspicuously absent from the briefing, however, despite reports her agency has “high confidence” in their findings that Mohammed bin Salman was behind Khashoggi’s killing.

Even though the White House has denied having blocked Haspel from the briefing, multiple senators said her absence was ordered by the White House. As Senators emerged from the briefing, a bipartisan group vocally expressed their anger to reporters.

Lindsey Graham (R-SC) demanded a briefing from the CIA before he votes on a spending bill (watch above). “Anything that you need me for to get out of town, I ain’t doing it until we hear from the CIA,” Graham said.

Jeff Flake (R-AZ) said he raised the issue of Haspel’s absence during the briefing, and that “I wish she would have been there,” he said. “A lot of us were frustrated that she wasn’t.”

Chris Coons (D-CT) expressed similar dissatisfaction with the event, addressing the war in Yemen and the CIA assessment on Khashoggi. He said he will support a bipartisan resolution to withdraw U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

Bob Corker (R-TN) said that even if there isn’t a direct report connecting Salman to the murder, there’s no doubt among his colleagues about who was responsible for what took place at the Istanbul embassy.

Dick Durbin (D-IL) said Haspel’s absence left a considerable void during the briefing, for which he blamed the White House.

Bob Menendez (D-NJ) called Haspel’s absence “outrageous” and accused the administration of deliberately turning a blind eye to the CIA’s intelligence out other nebulous “interests.”

Correction: This post initial identified Bob Corker as representing Texas. He represents Tennessee.

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