US Lawmaker Warns Trump, MBS Had ‘Shocking’ Phone Call After Khashoggi Murder
Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-Va.) urged US President Donald Trump to release the "shocking" transcript of a 2019 phone call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) following the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Vindman's request comes just days after Trump hosted MBS in the Oval Office and said "a lot of people didn't like" Kashoggi, when asked about the murder. US intelligence previously concluded that MBS ordered Khashoggi's killing, Axios reported.Vindman and 37 other lawmakers sent a letter to Trump Thursday calling for the transcript's release.The document remains classified, preventing Vindman from disclosing its contents, though he suggested Trump reaped benefits from MBS.Vindman described the call as one of the most "concerning" he reviewed during Trump's first term as a member of the National Security Council.During a Friday press conference, Vindman likened it to the president's 2019 call with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, which led to Trump's first impeachment."When the president sidelines his own intelligence community to shield a foreign leader, America's credibility is at stake," Vindman said.
"I'm honored to have Ms. Khashoggi with me today, standing by my side, as we remember her husband and call for transparency and accountability," Vindman said, adding, "We'll continue pressing for the release of the transcript so the American people understand the truth.""Vindman is a bitter back-bencher who nobody takes seriously," White House Spokesperson Steven Cheung told Axios. "He is a serial liar and was part of the hoax relating to the perfect Ukraine call, in which the Ukrainian president said so himself," he added.Trump formally designated Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally earlier this week, after MBS pledged to increase Riyadh's investments in the US from $600 billion to $1 trillion.The president revealed Monday he would sell F-35s to the Saudi Arabia, making it the first Middle Eastern country besides Israel to receive the advanced fighter jets.The kingdom also committed to purchasing around 300 US tanks as part of its expanding military cooperation with the White House.
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