Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has returned from his all-smiles visit with Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman and a quick swing past that scene-of-recent-unpleasantries in Turkey. Now that he’s back in DC, Pompeo has briefed Trump and stepped out to give the official word. And that official word is that the Saudis should be given “a few more days” to make a report.
Pompeo: I had a chance to talk in Riyadh with the King, the Crown Prince, the foreign minister, and all of the United States counterparts there. … They also made clear that they will conduct a complete, thorough investigation of all of the facts surrounding Mr. Khashoggi, and that they will do so in a timely fashion.
A timely fashion. So long as no one expected them to report on the murder they carried out within two weeks of when it happened. US resident Journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappeared on October 2, and evidence provided by Turkey indicates that he was killed within minutes of when he stepped into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
But Pompeo insists the US should wait until the Saudi leadership investigates its own crime on its own schedule and produce its own report on how it totally did not cut a man apart one finger at a time. After that, Pompeo says that Trump can “make a decision” about how to respond. Asked a question about how the Saudis can be trusted to conduct an investigation in which they’re the prime suspects, Pompeo said that everyone will get a chance to check out the report. And besides, bin Salman made ”a personal commitment” to Trump.
Just as Trump has done in every discussion of the subject, Pompeo immediately moved to the Saudis-so-important phase of the discussion, mentioning them as “an important counterterrorism partner” but leaving out the part where they’re also a big source of terrorism. Despite having been presented evidence by Turkish investigators, Pompeo would not even confirm that journalist Jamal Khashoggi is dead, saying only that “there are a lot of stories out there.”
However, it does appear that Pompeo may have been a lot more definitive speaking behind closed doors than he was in talking to the press. Because there has been a serious position change since Tuesday.
The upcoming investment conference is also known as “Davos in the desert” after that other economic forum where billionaires meet to decide where the money properly belongs, and where Donald Trump comes to brag and announce tariffs. But since the brutal murder of Khashoggi, confirmed attendance at the Saudi version of the conference has been rapidly draining away.
Mnuchin had stated as recently as Tuesday that he still meant to attend the Future Investment summit, stating that failing to attend would threaten the relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia. That Mnuchin announced that he wasn’t going after talking to Pompeo suggests that, with the cameras off, the secretary of State may have said something a good deal bleaker than “give them more time” to work up a report.