Today’s Trump News: Selling Out Human Rights and Coal Miners

The news from the tRumpus foreign tour, first stop, Saudi Arabia:

President Trump made a splashy debut on the world stage here Saturday, ushering in a new era in U.S.-Saudi Arabian relations by signing a joint “strategic vision” that includes $110 billion in American arms sales and other new investments that the administration said would bring hundreds of thousands of jobs.

Hundreds of thousands of jobs? That’s a lot of arms sales. But there’s more …

In addition to the security agreements, Jubeir said, U.S. business leaders here at an economic forum designed to coincide with Trump’s visit signed deals potentially worth more than $200 billion over the next 10 years.

Executives from a number of major U.S. companies unveiled investment partnerships with the Saudis, including Blackstone, a private-equity giant that announced a $40 billion infrastructure fund. Stephen A. Schwarzman, Blackstone’s chairman and chief executive, is close to Trump and leads the White House’s economic advisory council of CEO’s.

Jubeir also praised ExxonMobil, the energy behemoth that Tillerson ran until retiring to join the administration, as “the largest investor” in Saudi Arabia.

So this is really about oil? This is from Arab News:

Energy — one of Saudi Arabia’s strongest sectors — witnessed a number of announcements with a combined $22 billion worth of new deals signed during the forum by Saudi and American executives in the oil and gas industry.

A major funding boost for the largest oil refinery in the US was among a number of announcements in refining and petrochemicals signed on Saturday at the forum.

Saudi Aramco-owned Motiva Enterprises announced a landmark investment in the US totaling $12 billion with a likely additional investment of $18 billion by 2023.

It is estimated the deal will create approximately 2,500 additional jobs in the short term and a further 12,000 by 2023.

Announcing the deal at the Saudi-US CEO Forum, Amin Nasser, president and CEO of Saudi Aramco, said: “Today we are investing in long-term job creation and the future of the refining industry in the United States, and we are delivering on Vision 2030 to expand the US-Saudi partnership,” he said. “The message is clear: the longstanding bonds between our two countries are reinforced by both the value and scale of today’s agreement.”

First off, somebody should tell the coal miners in Kentucky and West Virginia that Trump just sold them down the river. In the short term, anyway, this investment promises to be the final nail in the coffin of the coal industry, seems to me. Coal technology won’t be able to compete.

But in the long term — I guess this means we’re not trying to phase out fossil fuels, huh? Wrong move.

I’m not happy about the arms part of the deal, either. Brian Schatz writes at Mother Jones:

As Donald Trump heads to Riyadh today on his first international trip as president, he brings with him a gift: a massive arms deal reportedly worth more than $100 billion for Saudi Arabia. According to Reuters, the deal is specifically being developed to coincide with the visit, where he will meet with Saudi leaders and discuss the war in Yemen. And its success seems to be crucial to the president, whose son-in-law Jared Kushner has personally intervened in the deal’s development. According to the New York Times, earlier this month, in the middle of a meeting with high-level Saudi delegates, Kushner greased the gears by calling Lockheed Martin chief Marilyn A. Hewson and asking her to cut the price on a sophisticated missile defense system.

Yep; Jared Kushner personally intervened to be sure the Arabs could get a better deal. Such a guy.

Other details of the package, though, have been somewhat shrouded in mystery—Congress, which will have to approve any new arms deal, has to yet to be notified of specific offerings—but it is said to include planes, armored vehicles, warships, and, perhaps most notably, precision-guided bombs.

It’s that last detail in particular that is making many in Washington sweat. The Obama administration inked arms deals with the kingdom worth more than $100 billion over two terms, but it changed course in its last months. As Mother Jones has regularly reported, the Saudi-led war against the Houthi armed group in Yemen has been fueled in part by American weapons, intelligence, and aerial refueling, and it has repeatedly hit civilian targets, including schools, marketplaces, weddings, hospitals, and places of worship. Civilian deaths are estimated to have reached 10,000, with 40,000 injured. In response, the Obama White House suspended a sale of precision-guided bombs to the country in December.

In lifting the suspension, Trump essentially is signalling the world that we’re okay with whatever Saudi Arabia does. Trump’s deal is going to face a big fight in the Senate, Brian Schatz writes. Even a number of Republicans have been appalled at what the Saudis have done in Yemen. Some are saying the sale would violate both the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act, although of course no one in the Trump Administration would care about those things.

See also Trump may be helping to create a famine in Yemen. Congress could stop him.

7 thoughts on “Today’s Trump News: Selling Out Human Rights and Coal Miners

  1. Did anyone see Trump sitting with the Saudi Royals today? Something serious is wrong with that man. I’ve never seen, even a child, much less a head of state act so disinterested, he is truly a dangerous man-child? I would have figured he would have loved the Saudi’s what with that authoritarian police state, mistreatment of women and all. Trump seemed to like his highness even less than Merkel? The righties are all excited that his mail order bride and the first daughter/senior advisor refused to wear traditional head scarfs, mission accomplished!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJ9r8LMU9bQ

  2. Off-topic: There will be no triple crown winner this year.

    Did you seen Trump bow to the Saudi Arabia leader? He criticized Obama for that.

  3. One thing for sure, no good news for Iowa pork farmers or Coca Cola. Levis are out of luck as are the coal miners. Let them all eat falafel. I am sure the two scooper will need ketchup.

    Cloud Computing is quite the horse, and yes Bonnie and all other horse fans, that trainer can train a dirt horse, and of course he is quite respected with the turf ones. What a race.,

  4. uncledad,
    He looked bored?
    Yeah, I guess…
    Probably because after a long flight, he was jet-lagged. And there were no young Russian hookers to pee on one another, to entertain him.

    But he perked-up when King Salman gave Saudi Arabia’s highest honor, a medal – The Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud – to him, The American Emperor, Clowus Dumbass t-RUMPus.

    How fitting, must Emperor Clowus Dumbass t-RUMPus have thought, that a mere King, have to honor the great one: ME!!!
    I’m glad he didn’t turn to his top minion, and in front of this (evil) King, say, “Hey Jared, you’re a fucking Jew, Son, and you people know from jewelry, so can you check to make sure that this ain’t just paste and gild! (Whispers: Sorry about the Jew line, Kid. It’s like that old saying – When in Riyadh, do as the Riyadhniks.. Riyadhnians… Riyadhnonians… AAAAAAAAAAAAARABS Do!!!)

    Every day, part of me fears what international incident Emperor Clownus Dumbass t-RUMPus’ boorish manners and his stupidity/ignorance/arrogance, etc… will bring about.
    And yet, another part of me, csn’t wait to see what malsprop-prone shit will come out of his stupid/ignorant/arrogant, etc…, mouth.

    If Mark Twain were alive today, he’ditch his old book about “Ugly Americans” on a long boat trip to the “Old Countries,” and instead, cover this ugly American yutz around, and entitle this book, “Malevolence Abroad!”

    Where’s Hunter S. Thompson when you reslly need him – AGAIN!?!?!?

  5. He bows before the King and his wimmins don’t have head scarfs. What a hypocrite. His brain-dead followers railed on Obama for the same things, but I guess as long as its one of their own, its cool.

    Principals don’t matter with with this crowd; neither does integrity. Intelligence need not apply either, as I am sure with this news they think they’re on the verge of realizing “hundreds of thousands of jobs”

    SAD!

  6. I seriously doubt Trump will have the balls to meet the Pope. Saudi Arabia will roll out the red carpet – they want US weapons. Israel will roll out the red carpet – they want US weapons. The Palestinians will put out a welcome mat – they haven’t got a red carpet and they are hoping to avoid genocide (delivered by US weapons). The Pope has spoken out against the “merchants of death” and Trump has aligned himself with them.

    When the advance group for Trump can’t get assurances that the Pope will stick to the Trump speech that they will have for the Holy Father, Trump will be a no-show at the Vatican. The slight will be noticed by 50 million US Catholics. Many are conservative but for Trump to blow off the Pope won’t sit well. I’ve been wrong before – hopefully no one is keeping score.

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