Name? Eliot Engel
Westphalian identity? United States American
Age? 73
Why is he in the news? Engel is the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in Congress which is currently trying (again) to block the sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia by the Trump Administration. Unfortunately, regardless of how Congress moves on this issue, Trump can/will declare another “emergency” and start up sales again. Would this be severe executive overreach? Definitely. Has Trump done it before? Yes. What’s to stop him from doing it again and again and again? We’re hoping Engel will soon but in the meantime, we’re happy to hear any ideas you might have.
Why do we care? Because the weapons the Trump administration is trying so hard to sell to their buddy MBS will largely be used against civilians in the ongoing war, sorry ceasefire in Yemen.
Why should you care? If you haven’t noticed, it seems that even in a pandemic, money matters more than lives and basic human rights. Countless politicians and advocates have spoken against engaging in more arms sales and other forms of trade with Saudi Arabia and yet, here we are with the Trump administration pushing towards another deal (once again, without the support of Congress).
Who else cares? Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Yemen and a lot of human rights groups. To focus on the former, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are the real beneficiaries of these arms sales as they further cement the countries’ economic and security ties with the United States. As such, MBS and MBZ particularly care about how and when these sales take place because their completion will do nothing but bolster their power at home and in the region.
Any further comments? Lawmakers have already blamed the administration for aggravating the Yemen crisis and for contributing to the killing of civilians in what is now a grave humanitarian crisis. Yet, the Trump administration continues because, as we mentioned above, money over lives. How exactly does this deal result in money for Trump’s supporters you may ask? Well, the sales would allow Raytheon (an American Defense Contractor) to significantly expand their relationship with Saudis in order to build high-tech bomb parts in Saudi Arabia…that definitely isn’t going to further aggravate the situation in Yemen…
