Truth about human life is more important than any arms deal

The disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist critical of the Saudi government, has rightly led to bipartisan outrage in Washington. Republican Senartor Lindsey Graham, for one, has vowed there will be “hell to pay” if, as has been reported by numerous news outlets citing multiple sources, the US green-card holder was lured into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on October 2 and brutally murdered by Saudi agents.One has to agree with Graham and applaud the bipartisan effort of nearly two dozen US senators – led by Republican Bob Corker of Tennessee, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Democrat Bob Menendez of New Jersey – calling for an immediate investigation into what are credible reports that the Saudi government is behind the journalist’s disappearance.As Senator Corker told the press last week after intelligence briefings on Khashoggi, “everything points at this juncture to Saudi Arabia” and “unfortunately it would appear that he’s been murdered.”President Trump told 60 Minutes on Sunday that, if reports of Khashoggi’s murder at the hands of Saudi authorities are true, there would be “something really terrible and disgusting about that.” He went on to say that, “We’re going to get to the bottom of it and there will be severe punishment.”But on Monday, after dispatching Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Saudi Arabia and “other places if necessary,” Trump said he had spoken to Saudi King Salman and that he “firmly denied any knowledge” of Khashoggi’s disappearance.Remarkably, the president then seemed to offer an alternative scenario. “It sounded to me like maybe these could have been rogue killers. Who knows? We’re going to try getting to the bottom of it very soon, but his was a flat denial.”What’s remarkable about this statement is that Trump seems to be taking the word of  Saudi Arabia – granted, a longstanding US ally – over his own intelligence community.According to a recent report by The Wall Street Journal, Turkish authorities have shared with US intelligence officials an audio recording from inside the Saudi consulate that “makes it clear” the Saudis killed Khashoggi.Even more remarkable, Trump seemed to be parroting what may soon be the official Saudi line. CNN has reported that two sources have confirmed that Khashoggi’s death “was the result of an interrogation (at the Saudi consulate) that went wrong, one that was intended to lead to his abduction from Turkey.”Those of us not privy to intelligence briefings may never know definitively what happened to Jamal Khashoggi. President Trump has promised “severe punishment” if Saudi involvement is proven. Yet he has also repeatedly said that any potential US sanctions should not include killing an arms deal with the Saudis.The truth about a human life is more important than any arms deal.As Florida Senator Marco Rubio said on Tuesday: “There isn’t enough money in the world to purchase back our credibility on human rights and the way nations should conduct themselves.” - Tribune News Service