Senate Will Determine Sanctions on Saudi Arabia After Wednesday Briefing

Senior Trump Administration officials will brief senators on Wednesday, a briefing House members are denied. This briefing can affect senators’ decision to go forward with sanctions on Saudi Arabia during the end-of-year session.

Many senators are no longer satisfied with doing nothing especially when the CIA concluded Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was responsible for the killing of the journalist, Jamal Khashoggi.

President Trump is reluctant to punish Saudi Arabia. Last week, he warned against soaring oil prices should U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia sour and thanked the country for the decreased price of oil at $54 per barrel. Last Tuesday, he denied the Crown Prince’s role in Khashoggi’s death and declared Saudi Arabia a “steadfast partner”.

President Trump’s statement last Tuesday provoked several GOP senators such as Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.). Democrats urged Mitch McConnell to bring sanctions legislation onto the floor.

Lawmakers are undecided on the best approach. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) does not advocate sanctions. He backs a block on a $110 billion arms sale.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis will lead the briefing on Wednesday. They will speak about Saudi Arabia’s continued involvement in the civil war in Yemen and Mr. Khashoggi’s murder at a Saudi Consulate.

Senators like Corker are displeased CIA Director, Gina Haspel, will not be present at the briefing.

Back in March, 44 senators voted to end U.S. support to the Saudi coalition in the Yemeni war through the War Powers Resolution. This motion to terminate U.S. support in Yemen was formed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut). Should this legislation come up again after the briefing, supporters are confident the necessary 50 votes will be amassed.

Voting for the Resolution would signify a collective political rebuke of Trump who insists on weapons deals with Saudi Arabia over addressing transgressions confirmed by his own intelligence officials.

Sen. Bob Corker made a request for Trump officials to investigate whether Crown Prince bin Salman violated human rights and should be hit with sanctions under the federal Magnitsky Act.

The lack of agreement over the best option in dealing with Saudi Arabia makes the approval of sanctions legislation unlikely.

Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) gave colleagues a heads up as to how the end-of-year session will unfold, saying floor time will be limited and priorities were already decided, specifically approving a farm bill and discussing year-end spending legislation.

Featured Image via Zimbio