The battle over the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act continues to grow today, with co-sponsor Sen. Lindsey Graham (R – SC) announcing that he’s going to block his own bill, to “make sure that anything we do doesn’t come to bite us.”
It’s unspoken, but the admission is the latest response to Sunday’s threats by Saudi Foreign Minister Abu Jubeir to sell $750 billion in US treasury assets in response to the law, a move which if done rapidly could do massive damage to the US dollar and the American economy in general.
The act would allow victims to sue foreign countries in US courts if those countries are involved in terror attacks on American soil, with Saudi Arabia’s government’s involvement in 9/11 likely to be a major target for such lawsuits. The Saudi leverage over the US economy seems to have derailed the law outright, with the White House also indicating a probable veto of the measure over fears it would “harm taxpayers.”
This complex and in many ways scandalous state of affairs comes amid President Obama’s planned visit to Saudi Arabia, and while he probably will try his darnedest to keep the matter out of the public statements surrounding the visit, it seems inescapable that the matter will be a topic of major discussion, with the Saudis bound to reiterate their threats to collapse the US economy during the visit.
WHAT A COWARD
“make sure that anything we do doesn’t come to bite us.”
A bit late in the game to start thinking that way…. hurt seems the on the menu either way after 15 years of “doing” all kinds of stuff. Some would say 75 years probably but lets just talk about the years Graham was actually involved as senator.
So who got us in this position where a hostile country can collapse the US economy? And how does Obama swearing allegiance to the Sauds keep them from financing another attack on Americans (or whatever their role was)?
Eerily similar to the NUMEC scandal in many ways. History delights in parallels and symmetries.
Wait, Bush lied?
Bush and Obama: Two liars separated at birth.
The Saudi threat is a transparent bluff. First, they would be unable to find enough willing buyers in such a short time. Also, they have been depleting their foreign exchange reserves to keep their currency pegged to the dollar and maintain their welfare state in a time of low oil prices. So if they crash the dollar, they crash the riyal.
“The Saudi threat is a transparent bluff. First, they would be unable to find enough willing buyers in such a short time.”
It could be that the Saudi threat is a bluff — but not for the first reason you cite. Merely putting the assets on the market would crash the price, making it difficult for the US to sell new debt since there would already be discounted debt out there for sale.
In fact, that would be BETTER for the Saudis — if it didn’t sell, then once the matter was settled, they would still have the debt in hand!
Debt in hand is not of much use if the debtor is the world’s mightiest power who would just refuse to pay back.
It’s OK to kill thousands of Americans as long as they give money to our politicians and oligarchs.
It is a well established fact that the Saudi government was not involved in 9/11. If they were Bush would have attacked Saudi Arabia instead of Iraq or Afghanistan.
Next you’ll claim the Saudis aren’t behind ISIS
They are as much behind ISIS as the US is. The US and Saudis work together to help establish alQaeda too.
The reality is Graham knew about this from th get go and failed to do his Constitutional duty to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States of America! Why is he doing what he is doing now???????????? It is easy! He is doing what he has always done, he is looking after the Military Industrial complex, have to keep selling weapons to the Saudis at all costs even the lives of Americans and their allies!
Senator Bob Graham has been exposing the truth for well over a decade, and Senator Lindsay Graham is waving the white flag of surrender to the most obnoxious theocracy and promoter of terrorism and Islamic extremism in the world. The US attacked Afghanistan and Iraq, citing the 9/11 attacks, but has protected the nation that bears the greatest responsibility for the atrocity.
How come then that recently a Federal court awarded $7 billion in a final judgement against Iran to some victims of the 9/11 attacks.
And does Sen. Graham support negotiation with terrorists? Is the home of the free and the brave backing down before the threats of a third world country? Say it aint so Sen. Graham.
Awww gee, you’ve already got the Saudis as terrorists, when in fact the terrorists were the enemies of the Saudis. Don’t these irrational leaps bother you a bit?
Senators Graham and McCain have been supporting the efforts of the Saudis for years to destabilize the Middle East and Africa and spread terror ultimately to the U.S. and Europe.
It’s becoming more and more likely that this is all about future US plans for a war on Saudi. We know they are allies but they are becoming uncooperative allies. There’s just no other reason the US would be involved in this business of the 28 pages if it wasn’t that.
And what an opportunity! What American isn’t going to be completely gung-ho to do Saudi when the propagandists make their case! And already before they do that, the case can be made against the Saudis by the hawks that this threat is an act of war.
Either Clinton or Trump will be fine with this but in any case, it’s not going to be Trump so need need for Raimondo’s input right now.
Debunking the 28 Pages
A LIMITED HANGOUT?
Thanks for sharing this. The guy makes several important points.
This is one rational thing Graham is doing and both the left and the right are against him. Do we all want a war against Saudi Arabia? It seems that the drumbeat is moving in that direction.
Apart from the so-called Saudi threat (which is not a threat at all because the US has been known to freezing foreign accounts) just the hypocrisy of this so called “Justice” group amazes me. What if other countries who have suffered at the hand of Bush and other Presidents of the US take a similar approach? Will this “Justice” group support their effort. Will the courts in NY act and pass impartial judgements? And if they do, wouldn’t it devastate US economy and ultimately the financial status of the US taxpayers?
“Graham, fresh of his failed presidential bid, and subsequent political suicide in attempting to stop Trump, was back in congress today repressing the truth from the American people.”
I don’t know what’s wrong with people’s memories, but less than 24 hours after the 9/11 attacks every mainstream news media outlet, speaking with One Voice, was blaming Saudi Arabia.
“Mr. Vice President, Mr. Speaker, Members of the Senate, and of the House of Representatives:
Yesterday, December 7th, 1941 — a date which will live in infamy — the United States of America experienced an event which is described in the 28 redacted pages of the Hawaii report, which I have been asked to release.”
“However, I have been in contact with the government of Japan, and unfortunately, they have advised us that if we should pass any legislation in respect to this unfortunate incident, they will be forced to sell the $750 billion in American bonds they currently hold.”
“Therefore, I will reluctantly veto any resolution of this chamber respecting these events, and will delay the release of the 28 pages until a suitable time- I’m thinking, 1980 would be good.”
“Thank you, and God Bless America!”
Recently the Supreme Court stated that Iran should pay the victims of the Beirut attack several billion dollars. There is a loophole in the present law that says foreign governments cannot be sued in the U.S. that permits us to sue Iran. So we sue Iran. Now the U.S. Navy ship shot down an Iranian commercial airliner flying a scheduled flight at a time when U.S. and Iran were not at war and there is good evidence our Naval warship actually was in Iranian territorial waters when it shot down the Iranian aircraft killing nearly 300 Iranians. The smithsonian TC recreates and discusses air disasters and in the course of its presentation on this disaster reveled that the shooting down was due to a mistake and panic by some navy personnel who somehow became convinced the Iranian planes diving toward them when as a matter of fact the Iranian commercial plane was climbing to its scheduled altitude after taking off from Iran. Now how many of our Americans who tout the need for justice will agree Iran should be compensated for this act. We never even issued an apology. And how many Americans know about this from our investigative free and independent fearless journalists?