Congress orders investigation into Saudi crown prince's role in Khashoggi murder, says Trump's response 'won't cut it'

(Image credit: Alex Wong / Getty Images)

last updated 21 November 2018

After President Trump seemed to let Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman off the hook for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Congress is demanding he take further action.

Sens. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), the top-ranking Republican and Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, have ordered an investigation into whether the Saudi crown prince was involved in the plot to murder Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate last month, ABC News reports. Trump in a statement Tuesday said that "we may never know" the facts of the case and that bin Salman may or may not have been involved, despite the fact that the CIA has reportedly determined that the crown prince ordered the murder, per CNN.

Corker has been highly critical of Trump's Tuesday statement, tweeting, "I never thought I'd see the day a White House would moonlight as a public relations firm for the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia." Under the Global Magnitsky Act, the president has four months to respond after a congressional committee asks him to determine whether a human rights violation was committed, per The Washington Post. The Trump administration recently sanctioned 17 Saudis in response to a similar request, and now, Congress is demanding the administration not stop there, with Corker tweeting, "'Maybe he did and maybe he didn't' won’t cut it."

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.

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