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Why is the State Department So Cozy with the Saudis?

(Wall Street Journal) Joel Mowbray - On April 24, 2002, law-enforcement officials discovered a "snag" with Crown Prince Abdullah's eight-plane entourage, which was arriving with the prince for a visit to George W. Bush's Western White House in Crawford, Texas. The flight manifest included one person wanted by U.S. law enforcement authorities and two others on a terrorist watch list. The FBI was ready to "storm the plane and pull those guys off," believing that felons, even Saudi felons, were to be arrested. In the end, the three didn't get anywhere near Crawford, but were also spared the "embarrassment" of arrest. That normally staid bureaucrats engaged in incredible acrobatics to bail out three guys who never should have been in the U.S. in the first place says a great deal about State's "special relationship" with the Saudis. In addition to hiring former State officials as direct paid lobbyists, Saudi money goes indirectly to former State officials who promote the Saudi agenda under the cover of the think-tank label. Three organizations in particular are the primary beneficiaries of Saudi petrodollars, and all are populated with former State officials: the Meridian International Center, the Middle East Policy Council, and the Middle East Institute.
2003-10-13 00:00:00
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