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Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi was very likely kidnapped, tortured, and murdered by a Saudi Arabian kill squad at the Saudi consulate in Turkey. All the evidence points to them and despite their denials, they haven’t put up a shred of evidence in their defense.
Now, the Kingdom is faced with three ways to handle the situation.
Admit some of the truth but pin it on a scapegoat
Mohammed bin Salman, crown prince and unofficial ruler of the Kingdom, was almost certainly the person who gave the order to take out Khashoggi. Decisions like these are not made by lesser officials or specific agencies without at least getting MBS’ blessing. Considering much of Khashoggi’s negative commentary about the Kingdom was directed at MBS, it would make sense for the man in charge to be the one who made the call.
While it’s hard for many of us who are paying attention to believe MBS wasn’t involved, the spin machine, political clout, and mainstream media pressure owned by Saudis is tremendous. This is the same nation that positioned itself as one of our prime partners in the war on terror despite having direct connections to the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It’s also the same nation that spreads Wahhabism, one of the most extreme ideologies in Islam, around the globe while somehow having a public sentiment towards them that does not match. Ask your average American where they are on the extremism scale and they’ll be ranked as mostly moderate. After all, they let some women drive now!
With all this in mind, they could say, “Yes, there was an order to kill Khashoggi but it came from [insert low ranking scapegoat official]. The regime in general and MBS in particular just found out about it today after an internal investigation revealed [scapegoat] has a personal vendetta against Khashoggi because he [insert fabricated accusation]. The Kingdom apologizes to Khashoggi’s family and fiancee. We only wish we could have discovered the plot soon enough to prevent it from happening.”
In that scenario, as unbelievable as it is, the U.S. government would almost certainly forgive it following a token sanction or public scolding. We’d be back to normal relations within a month.
While this might seem like the easiest road to take, it’s also the least likely. Western thought accepts this as a logical way to cover it up and sweep it under the rug, but Saudi Arabia is conspicuous in their unwillingness to acknowledge any wrongdoing in any manner, ever.
Keep denying and hope their spin machine works
As mentioned above, the amount of control Saudi Arabia has in the United States is immense. It isn’t just the oil. They directly pay media, think tanks, lobbyists, and consultants who aid them in funneling money to all the right people.
If anyone can make a story disappear, it’s Saudi Arabia.
But this particular story may have legs that are too strong to trip up. Journalists are not accustomed to burying stories about journalists getting murdered and the Washington Post has clout of its own. As crazy as it sounds today, it’s still possible that they can make it fall in an active news cycle.
The midterm elections may not come soon enough for them, though.
This is the most likely scenario.
Keep denying but change the story to Russia and China
An interesting and potentially dangerous tactic may be for Saudi Arabia to become indignant towards the accumulated accusations towards them. They could start making threats and working with non-allies to change the tone of the story altogether.
By going to Russia and/or China, the mere threat of fundamentally changing the relationship with the United States over accusations it denies could be enough to force Washington DC to ease the pressure on them. Of all the scenarios, this is the one the White House fears the most. It won’t reduce coverage. It would force coverage to expand as leftist mainstream media ties the Saudis’ offenses to their nemesis in the Oval Office.
President Trump and Jared Kushner have worked hard to make the Saudi-US relationship stronger than it’s been in decades. They need that relationship if there’s any hope of brokering a peace deal in the Middle East. Even if we dismiss the economic blowback from a contentious relationship between Riyadh and Washington DC, the foreign affairs effects alone would be devastating.
The President has to play hardball, at least to an American public that wants repercussions against a murderous regime. If the Saudis start playing hardball as well, it could cause major issues that affect elections, hurt the economy, and end hope for reaching a peace deal any time soon.
Whatever path the Saudis choose, one thing is certain. The United States should not be in bed with a regime that will murder someone who works in the United States and has permanent legal residence here. That’s not what allies do to each other.
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