- President Donald Trump has called on PET journalist Bob Woodward to protect Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after he killed and broke Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
- According to Woodward’s new book, amid the U.S. outcry over Khashoggi’s murder, Trump said, “I suddenly saved him -“. “I was able to get Congress to leave them alone. I was able to stop them.”
- The president also told Woodward that he would pursue an MBS. Khashoggi is not believed to have ordered the assassination, U.S. And other foreign intelligence services concluded that he had personally ordered.
- After Khashoggi’s assassination, Trump bypassed Congress to sell nearly billion 1 billion worth of weapons to the Saudis and the UAE, and insured all three of the resolutions blocking the sale, as well as vetoing a resolution to end U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
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President Donald Trump has called on PET journalist Bob Woodward to save Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) from a congressional inquiry into the brutal assassination of American journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
That’s according to Woodward’s next book “Rage”. The book, a copy of which was obtained by Insider, is set to be released on September 15.
Woodward conducted 18 extensive interviews with the president for the book, as well as interviews with several senior White House officials and former administration officials. Still, Trump called the book last month a “fake, as always, brawl like many others.”
Woodward wrote that Trump called him on January 22 after he attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. During the conversation, Woodward pressed the president about Khashoggi’s brutal assassination.
The longtime Washington Post columnist was known for his criticism of the Saudi state. On October 2, 2018, an October year-old journalist was assassinated at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul after going there to get papers for her next wedding.
A month later, the CIA concluded that the MBS had personally ordered Khashogi’s assassination.
“People at the post are upset about the private killing,” Woodward told Trump on Jan. 22, according to his book. “That’s one of the scariest things. You said it yourself.”
“Yes, but Iran is killing 36 people in one day, so -” Woodward redirected the conversation about Khashoggi’s assassination before Trump started.
Woodward wrote that he was constantly pressuring Trump about the role of the MBS in ordering Khashoggi’s assassination, which is widely reported.
According to the book, in the midst of the U.S. outcry after Khashoggi’s assassination, Trump said in 2018, “I saved her —-.” “I was able to get Congress to leave them alone. I was able to stop them.”
During his January 22 conversation with Woodward, the president said, “Well, I understand what you’re talking about, and I’m very involved. I know everything about the whole situation.”
Trump added that Saudi Arabia spends billions of dollars on US products. U.S. Despite the conclusions drawn by intelligence and other foreign intelligence agencies, he also emphasized the MBS ‘claim of innocence.
President Donald Trump has charted a sale of military hardware as he welcomes Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia to the Oval Office Feet at the White House in Washington DC on March 20, 2018.
Jonathan Ernst / Reuters
“He’ll always say he didn’t do it,” Trump said of MBS. “He says that to everyone, and obviously I’m glad he says that. But he’ll tell you, he’ll tell Congress, and he’ll tell it all. He’s not saying he did it.”
“Do you think he did that?” Woodward asked.
“No, he says he didn’t do it,” Trump replied.
“I know, but do you really believe -” Woodward began before Trump cut it.
“He insists he didn’t. Bob, they spent billion 400 billion in a very short time,” the president said. “And you know, they’re in the Middle East. You know, they’re big. Because of their religious monuments, you know, they have real power. They have oil, but they also have great monuments for religion.” You know, right? For that religion. “
He added, “If we weren’t there they wouldn’t last a week and they know it.”
Trump has repeatedly used executive power to thwart or bypass congressional efforts to sever ties with Riyadh following Khashoggi’s assassination.
He also called on the U.S. to work for the Saudis in Yemen. Bilateral bill vetoed to end support. The war in Yemen has fueled a devastating humanitarian crisis, and the Saudi-led coalition has killed civilians using US-made bombs.
The president bypassed Congress to force Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to sell nearly billion 1 billion worth of weapons, and later vetoed several resolutions blocking the sale.
More recently, Trump has gone to the Saudis and other countries in the region to sell armed drones in violation of the decades-old arms control treaty, which drew a response from Democrats and Republicans in Congress.
