US Lawmakers Reintroduce Bill to Punish Saudi Arabia for Khashoggi Murder

White House expected to miss deadline on murder report

One day before the White House is required by law to submit a report to Congress on the Saudi murder of Jamal Khashoggi, lawmakers, particularly senators, are gearing up for a new series of legislation designed to punish Saudi Arabia for the murder. The Senate already reintroduced one such bill.

Congressional aides say that there is no indication that President Trump is going to comply with the law and submit any report at all on the murder. This is why bipartisan lawmakers are moving to get legislation ready for that eventuality.

Previous attempts at such resolutions made progress in the Senate, but were blocked by the former House leadership. The new House leadership seems a lot more willing to advance such resolutions, and is already allowing a floor vote on the Yemen War.

Voting to end the Yemen War is itself a major rebuke to the Saudis, as far as many are concerned. Current efforts focused on sanctioning those confirmed to be involved with the murder. Since all evidence is that includes the Saudi Crown Prince, that’s likely to be an ongoing battle with the White House.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.