Why has the media and much of the political establishment made the presumed murder of an Islamist Saudi dissident on Turkish soil a defining issue in American foreign policy?
Jamal Khashoggi is not a U.S. citizen, despite his past residence in Virginia, nor is he a lover of liberty, despite his criticism of Saudi Arabia’s despotic regime. He previously served that regime as a mouthpiece for, and adviser to, the alleged al-Qaeda-tied Saudi intelligence leader Turki bin Faisal. Khashoggi mourned the death of Osama bin Laden, whom Khashoggi had been granted unusual levels of access for numerous interviews. Khashoggi was also an ardent proponent of political Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Needless to say, one wonders why Khashoggi was permitted to enter the United States and handed a column at The Washington Post given this background, particularly at a time our media claims acute sensitivity to foreign influence. One also wonders why so many in the media are quick to fawn over such a figure given his regressive views.
This is not to dismiss Khashoggi’s alleged gory assassination at the hands of his supposed Saudi captors by characteristically sketchy unnamed Turkish sources. If Mohammad bin Salman’s regime did execute this grisly murder, risking all the capital it had accrued in the West to send a signal to its political opposition, it should have to deal with the consequences.
But surely our media and political establishment are not blind to the brutality and censorship that characterizes the regimes of the Islamic world, whether in Riyadh, Ankara, or Tehran. Nor are they deaf to the proxy war taking place in any of a number of theaters with Iran, intense jockeying for relations with the Trump administration and much else that divides Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Arab nations like Egypt and the United Arab Emirates on the one hand, and Turkey and Qatar on the other.
3 Reasons Khashoggi Is Suddenly a BFD
Given the realities of an Islamic world marked by tyranny and perpetually roiled in internecine warfare, it is striking that this single alleged episode would lead to calls for America to effectively dismantle its entire regional policy. Yet is Saudi Arabia significantly different today than it was yesterday? It is even more curious, again, that the press would rush to such a judgment without evidence from a single trustworthy source, or any piece of compelling evidence.
Occam’s Razor suggests the media and political establishment is interested in Khashoggi for three main reasons.
First, Khashoggi is being used as a cudgel against President Trump’s foreign policy. The Trump administration has cultivated deep ties with Saudi strongman Mohammad bin Salman in a symbiotic relationship. The Saudis serve as the focal point in the Trump administration’s Gulf counter-jihadist alliance, as well as its Sunni Arab anti-Iran coalition. The United States provides bin Salman both military and political support, and credibility that he hopes will enable him to open Saudi Arabia to foreign capital to underwrite his modernization efforts and cement his rule on a more stable foundation.
Much of the establishment is seeking to force the Trump administration to ditch the Saudis — enemies of progressive Wilsonian foreign policy establishment darling Iranand its beloved fallen Iran Deal — thereby scuttling the Trump administration’s overall counter-jihadist, anti-Khomeinist Middle East policy. This policy is the polar opposite of the Obama administration’s, which the establishment of course largely supported.
Second, casting bin Salman as a murderous dictator feeds into one of the establishment’s favorite narratives, that Trump embraces authoritarians and harbors authoritarian tendencies himself. The counter of course is that foreign policy requires partnering at times with unsavory regimes that reject our values in order to advance our greater interests, and Trump understands this.
Such concerns were evidently subordinated when the Obama administration was consummating the Iran Deal, supporting the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and all manner of jihadists in Libya, and engaging in the Russian reset. Certainly the hundreds of thousands dead in Iran-backed Syria, where America’s chief contributions included arming ISIS and ceding control to Russia, are a testament to the establishment’s comfort with setting aside values when pursuing its interests. Most absurd of all among a press frequently blinded by its Trump hatred is the suggestion that Trump actually inspired the Saudis’ alleged actions.
Third, the media believes in protecting its own, and virtue-signaling. Threatening a journalist — if that journalist isn’t a conservative, and the person threatening him isn’t a leftist — is the surest way to draw the media’s ire. The pile-on in this case for not just the media, but also for major U.S. corporations, to cut ties with the Saudis indicates the social pressure is strong among the progressive elite to reject the Saudis on supposed moral grounds, given the alleged murder of a romanticized supposed “reformer” in exile, notwithstanding the West’s commerce with other similarly violent regimes abroad. The media also loves stoking the flames of the narrative that Trump wishes to shut down dissent. If he tolerates the Saudis doing so, in the media’s eyes, all the more reason to attack.
There’s More Going On Here, Of Course
Another element to this story was raised in one of Khashoggi’s last columns for The Washington Post. It has gone ignored, and might explain in part the rush to make Khashoggi a cause célèbre given the lack of facts and evidence, and Khashoggi’s checkered background.
On Aug. 28, 2018, Khashoggi published an article for The Washington Post titled “The U.S. is wrong about the Muslim Brotherhood — and the Arab world is suffering for it.” In it, he blames the United States’ aversion to the Muslim Brotherhood for the “loss of a great opportunity to reform the entire Arab world and allow a historic change that might have freed the region from a thousand years of tyranny.”
Get that? It is the Sharia supremacist Muslim Brotherhood that in Khashoggi’s view would have “liberated” the Arab world. Khashoggi continues:
Really?
The reason for the uproarious false concern by the left is because they constantly search for the even that will put Trump in a position where whatever he does is wrong. If he reacts like the left pretends to want him to react, he destroys regional alliances, damages economic prospects and costs jobs. If he doesn’t condemn Saudi Arabia without valid proof, he is probably “colluding”, anti-journalist and inhumane. This is the judgement, of course, by those who cheered Obama bending over backwards to appease an Iranian regime that provided IED technology and materials to kill US soldiers.
Again… really?
The left and the UN supports anything that is anti-Semitic.
Stop stop any curiosity is now tagged conspiracy theory or banned as politically slanted even worser you will be called a Republican, you must just follow and believe the completely neutral fair and honest journalism from MSM. now back to sleep, turn on the TV and tune in……
OK, OK, OK… here’s the perfect explanation for the Saudi’s. They DELETED Khashoggi because he was talking about weddings, funeral and yoga. Then, they Bleachbit him. EVERY liberal will believe that and, meanwhile, an investigation can be conducted.
Riddle me this: Why the hell is a president’s tool-of-a-son-in-law son-in-lawspeaking to national foreign policy matters to begin with? How did we come to the goofball arrangement where the State Department has been purged of all expertise, and a pack of casino and real estate investment hustlers have taken over?
@Greg: Cant do any worse than Hillary and her merry band. Policies that caused the flood of uncivilized Africans into EU.
Oh, he sure as hell can do far worse than Hillary Clinton. Not only is he incompetent—he’s malignant. Some people can’t seem to correctly size up the character or qualifications of anybody.
Nope. You’re more in the cover-your-asses-before-an-election phase, and the preserve-a-$110-billion-arms-deal-with-a-corrupt-regime phase.
No you won’t, you posturing little jackass. People who are far smarter and more honest than you will determine that for themselves. Get a damn dictionary. Facts are things that are demonstrably true. Conjectures are things that are credible or not.
Trump’s total bullshit lie of the day:
That number is so mind-bogglingly absurd that I’m surprised even Trump said it. He must think his supporters are complete idiots.
@Greg: Dont care if he said 350 billion if it means 1 American job, its worth more than 1 million muslim brotherhood pals of terrorists.
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/20/us-saudi-arabia-seal-weapons-deal-worth-nearly-110-billion-as-trump-begins-visit.html.
The jobs number is impossible to calculate the highly skilled jobs to the waitresses grocery store stock boys steel mill workers, truck drivers ect ect that support the factories.
Who is lying to whom Greggie? I know its tough to get through the mind control.
@Greg:
Well, unless he hands ALL State Department emails over to our adversaries, sells our uranium to Russia, gets a consulate sacked and Ambassador killed, I don’t think he can do worse.
Obama gave the Iranians $150 billion and they are the largest supporters of terrorism in the world and we got NO jobs out of that.
What possible motive could Guatemala’s president Jimmy Morales have for promoting such a story? I’d bet on the politics of fear and a coming pitch for increased U.S. foreign aid. Though it might be a joke. Before becoming El Presidente, Jimmy Morales was a professional television comedian.
@kitt:
Not caring about all of Trump’s lies is a big part of the problem.
@Greg: Be more specific what lies seems its is more twisting in the wind to attack the President, so now both the president of Mexico and Guatemala lie just for Trump. Tell me how a gun ran by Eric Holder got to Paris to shoot up a Disco.
If they are terrorists or not people from all over the planet are crossing our southern border.
Nothing to do with a contributor to WaPo and what would you want the President do about 1 murder that is none of our business. How many people does China murder?
@Greg:
You mean he didn’t become a public joke AFTER being President, like Obama did?
My apologies; I pasted the wrong comment on #8; should have read:
Well, unless he hands ALL State Department emails over to our adversaries, sells our uranium to Russia, gets a consulate sacked and Ambassador killed, I don’t think he can do worse.
What motive, indeed? That revelation only hardens the resolve to keep the illegal immigrant hoard out of our country, but he is trying to PROMOTE sending their most needy and poverty stricken up to Mother United States.
An RSVP invitation from His Satanic Majesty; show up, or be chopped up…
Jamal Khashoggi’s son, Mohammed Bin Salman photographed at meeting after activist’s death
Note the watchful black-uniformed gentleman in the background of the short video clip. No doubt Khashoggi’s son was very much aware of the stare.
News flash: In her leaked memo, Hillary Clinton had these people sized up correctly. They’re spending billions on the international expansion of Wahhabism. All Trump and Kushner see when they look at them are weapons customers and dollar signs. That’s all they ever see. Everything else is pretense.
@Greg:
Of course, them dollars were still green, weren’t they?
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2016/08/01/clinton-cash-khizr-khans-deep-legal-financial-connections-saudi-arabia-hillarys-clinton-foundation-connect-terror-immigration-email-scandals/
No one has yet demonstrated that any funds donated to the Clinton Foundation were diverted for their personal use or improperly used in any way. The Foundation publicly discloses it’s financial activities annually, and remains very highly rated by independent charity rating organizations.
The Trump Foundation, on the other hand, has uniformly abysmal ratings on all counts. It was a patently crooked operation, and is presently being sued by the State of New York after a two year investigation.
June 14, 2018 — New York Attorney General Sues Trump Foundation After 2-Year Investigation
Despite Khashoggi case, U.S. firms and Saudi prince show up at ‘Davos in the Desert’
Ambivalence? No, it’s a matter of changing nothing whatsoever, while pretending to care for the sake of domestic politics.
@Greg:
Yet, according to YOUR OWN rules, until she PROVES they weren’t, THEY ARE GUILTY.
But, that would be a waste of a good accusation, because while millions and millions flow(ed) into the Clinton Foundation, only 10% went to any actual causes. So, it was in essence, nothing but a gigantic ATM for the Clinton’s, paying their hotels, private jets, staff and whores out of the “foundation”.
Most of the Foundation’s spending goes to travel, expenses and “other”
http://dailycaller.com/2016/09/17/clinton-foundation-spent-millions-more-on-travel-than-charitable-grants-irs-filings-show/#ixzz4Ke3Wn0vy
Charity Navigator gets favors from Clinton Foundation, then gives them 4-star rating
http://dailycaller.com/2016/09/01/clinton-foundation-doles-out-favors-gets-four-star-rating-in-return-on-charity-website/
10% of Clinton Foundation funds goes to direct aid
http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials/042715-749839-clinton-foundation-spent-just-10-percent-on-direct-aid.htm
The Clinton foundation is a slush-fund cash-cow for the Clintons. Cha-ching.
http://nypost.com/2015/04/26/charity-watchdog-clinton-foundation-a-slush-fund/
Clinton foundation accepted donations that violated government agreement
http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/26/politics/clinton-foundation-donation-algeria-haiti/
Clinton foundation falsified tax reports
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/26/us-usa-election-clinton-foundation-idUSKBN0NH0TP20150426
Largest donor to Clinton foundation has trade ties with Iran that should have drawn sanctions from the State Department… uh-oh
http://hotair.com/archives/2015/04/18/newsweek-largest-individual-donor-to-clinton-foundation-has-trade-ties-to-iran/
Clinton Foundation getting around restrictions on collecting foreign donor money
http://hotair.com/archives/2015/04/15/naturally-clinton-foundations-new-policy-allows-it-to-keep-foreign-donors-galore/
Clinton Foundation took in millions of dollars from foreign governments while Hillary was Sec of State
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/foreign-governments-gave-millions-to-foundation-while-clinton-was-at-state-dept/2015/02/25/31937c1e-bc3f-11e4-8668-4e7ba8439ca6_story.html
As we have been discussing, the left use accusations as a political tool. If this “investigation” clearly indicates guilt, then so do all the links I provided…. and all the others I have ready in case you would like to see them.
What did Obama do when he met the Saudi king? He BOWED… deeply and reverently. What did Obama do when he met the murderous Castro’s? He hugged them. What did Obama do when he met Chavez? He hugged him. What did Obama do when he invited numerous African dictators to the White House? He hugged them. What did Obama do with the terrorist Iranian regime that is the largest world-wide supporter of terrorism and is responsible for killing and maiming hundreds of US soldiers? He hugged them… a hundred and fifty billion times.
Have you got any links that aren’t bullshit right-wing propaganda outlets? Oh, wait… That last one is the Washington Post. “Foreign governments gave millions to foundation while Clinton was at State Dept”
To which I reply, So what? They also gave millions to the Foundation when she wasn’t at the State Department. It’s a very well known, long-running an international charity foundation. And NOT under criminal investigation, like another “charity” mentioned up above.
@Greg: They are all credible and they are all factual. Accepting cash “contributions” while you are making policy decisions that favor the countries making the “contributions” (aka “bribes”) can appear to be sort of a conflict of interest; you know, that thing YOU keep accusing Trump of being involved in. AND Hillary promised Obama she would accept NO foreign money while in his Administration. But, liars lie to other liars, don’t they?