INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
on Wednesday ignored criticism that he gave Saudi Arabia a free pass on the murder of a dissident journalist, instead praising the Islamic
kingdom for keeping oil prices low.Trump, on holiday at his Florida Mar-a-Lago Club, doubled down on an unusually worded statement from
Tuesday that he was essentially ignoring the killing of Jamal Khashoggi because of what he said were more important US strategic and
commercial interests."Oil prices getting lower
Great! Like a big Tax Cut for America and the World
Enjoy! $54, was just $82," he tweeted
"Thank you to Saudi Arabia, but let's go lower!"The fulsome praise for Saudi Arabia's help in maintaining cheap oil built on comments he
made Tuesday at the White House, saying that "if we broke with them, I think your oil prices would go through the roof.""They've helped me
keep them down," he said.Guns and moneyThe focus on oil prices is one strand of Trump's argument against punishing the US ally for
Khashoggi's death, even though the CIA reportedly found strong evidence that de facto Saudi leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was
involved.Khashoggi, a US resident who wrote for The Washington Post and had been critical of Prince Mohammed, was lured to the Saudi
consulate in Istanbul on October 2, killed and reportedly dismembered.After lengthy denials, Saudi authorities admitted responsibility and
said 21 people had been taken into custody
However, a CIA analysis leaked to the US media went further, reportedly pointing the finger at Prince Mohammed, who has especially close
contacts with the Trump White House.In a formal statement Tuesday -- released just after nearly the entire White House press corps had left
to cover the lighthearted annual ritual of the president sparing a turkey from the Thanksgiving table -- Trump said the prince "could very
well be" in on the crime.But he then went on to flatly reject any suggestion of punishing the Saudi leader, saying Washington "intends to
remain a steadfast partner."Trump's reasoning was that Saudi Arabia and the United States are partners in opposing Iran and the Saudis have
committed to $450 billion in weapons contracts and other investments, as well as being a major oil producer."Very simply it is called
America first!" Trump concluded.This was in contrast to previously stated positions where Trump promised a tough response, warning in an
October interview with The Wall Street Journal, for example, that the US-Saudi relationship "would take a while to rebuild."'Crazy'
princeTrump's posture has provoked rare dissension among the ranks of senior Republicans.Senator Lindsey Graham said on Fox News that Prince
leader of the foreign relations committee, tweeted scathingly: "I never thought I'd see the day a White House would moonlight as a public
relations firm for the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia."Corker and the senior Democrat on the committee, Bob Menendez, demanded that the Trump
administration issue a clear statement on whether Prince Mohammed was involved.Another prominent Republican, Senator Rand Paul, added "Let's
put America first, not Saudi Arabia," while Khashoggi's old employer the Post said in an editorial that Trump's position meant "a world
where dictators know they can murder their critics and suffer no consequences."Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pushed back in a radio
interview Wednesday, saying: "We are going to make sure that America always stands for human rights
We've watched the Saudis actually move in that direction during our time in office as well."It's not an unblemished record, but there
certainly have been steps forward."(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published
