The Washington Times reports: “Senate preserves Trump arms deal with Saudi Arabia.” The vote was 53-47.
Rand Paul was a leading sponsor of the legislation against the arms sales. See video clips of his comments on Twitter and the full debate on C-SPAN.
SHIREEN AL-ADEIMI, sha980 at mail.harvard.edu, @shireen818 Al-Adeimi, a Yemeni-Canadian-American, is a doctoral candidate and instructor at Harvard University. See her interview on Public Radio International’s “The World”: “Will U.S. stop arming Saudi attackers in Yemen?”
KATE GOULD, kate at fcnl.org, @K8Gould Legislative representative for Middle East Policy for the Friends Committee on National Legislation, Gould said today: “Despite the Saudi government and the world’s largest weapons manufacturers paying K Street lobbyists to descend on Capitol Hill, opposition to the Saudi-led war in Yemen is on the rise. Slick advertising and Saudi-funded lobbying campaigns did not get a slam dunk on the Senate floor. This is proof positive that grassroots citizen advocacy — whether in calls, emails, letters to the editor or visits with congressional offices –matters.
“This vote should mark the beginning, not the end, of congressional action to stop the bombardment and starvation of millions of Yemenis. Our nationwide network will be urging members of Congress to continue to press the Trump administration, the Saudi government and the world to end to the war and famine, and to pursue a peaceful, diplomatic solution to the crisis in Yemen. As a faith community, we categorically reject the Saudi strategy of starving civilians to gain leverage at the negotiating table.”
FCLN notes: “S.J.Res. 42, originally introduced by Senators Paul, Murphy and Franken, is a resolution of disapproval for the $550 million sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia that replenishes stockpiles of weapons the kingdom is using in its war in Yemen.”