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House Votes To Block Saudi Arms Sales, Setting Up Trump Veto

House Votes To Block Saudi Arms Sales, Setting Up Trump Veto

(Bloomberg) -- The House joined the Senate in voting to block arms sales to Saudi Arabia, a rejection of President Donald Trump’s decision to break congressional holds on the sales, which sets up the third veto of the president’s administration.

The chamber passed three measures that are part of a package of 22 resolutions to end the emergency declaration that the Trump administration used to push through $8 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and other countries. All three of the resolutions received some Republican support, but not enough to override a promised veto by Trump.

Members of both parties criticized Trump’s use of the emergency declaration and have urged stronger consequences for Saudi Arabia’s role in the killing of columnist Jamal Khashoggi last year. Lawmakers are also increasingly questioning the Saudi-led war in Yemen that has resulted in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Foreign policy is one of the few areas where Trump has faced some resistance from congressional Republicans, particularly his approach to Saudi Arabia. Trump has cultivated a close relationship with the kingdom -- it was the first country he visited as president and he has described the traditional, if troubled, ally as a bulwark against Iran’s malign activity in the region.

‘Controversial’ Sales

The three resolutions adopted by the House Wednesday involve “the most controversial and significant sales contemplated,” according to Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, concerning the sales of precision guided munitions to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The other 19 resolutions were not considered.

The Trump administration issued a veto threat for all three measures, saying that the sales directly support “the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a friendly country that continues to be an important force for political and economic stability in the Middle East.”

Earlier this year, Trump vetoed legislation directing the U.S. to end support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen. He also vetoed a measure aimed at halting his national emergency plan to fund a border wall.

It took bipartisan cooperation in the Senate last month to hold a vote on the resolutions, originally sponsored by Senator Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee.

The Senate committee will hold a vote next week on two competing proposals to punish Saudi Arabia for the Khashogghi killing and other offenses. The bills, one authored by Menendez and the other by the panel’s Republican chairman Jim Risch, both have bipartisan support and may both clear the committee, at which point it will fall to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to decide if and how the measures come to the floor.

Menendez is pushing for his bill, rather than Risch’s bill, arguing that it would be a stronger punishment for Saudi Arabia and could directly impact Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman if he is found to be responsible for the Khashoggi killing. Risch’s bill would restrict U.S. visas for members of the kingdom’s royal family but not the crown prince or the Saudi ambassador.

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Flatley in Washington at dflatley1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Joe Sobczyk at jsobczyk@bloomberg.net, Anna Edgerton

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