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Pompeo-Mattis briefing on Yemen to Senate bombs

Secretaries of State and Defense, Mike Pompeo and Jim Mattis, urged senators to stay the course on US support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen, but senators said they were inclined to vote for legislation to curtail US support.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks to the media after a closed briefing for senators about the latest developments related to the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., November 28, 2018.      REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC151380CF00

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis urged senators at a closed-door briefing today to stay the course on US support for the Saudi-led military coalition fighting in Yemen. But the Donald Trump administration’s refusal to send CIA Director Gina Haspel to brief senators on the intelligence community's assessment of the role of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, coupled with Pompeo’s urging of business as usual with the Saudis in a poorly received Wall Street Journal op-ed overnight, appeared to backfire. Several senators emerged from the briefing saying they planned to vote for legislation that would curtail US involvement in the war.

It’s “outrageous” and a “cover-up” that the White House refused to send Haspel to join the briefing, ranking Senate Foreign Relations Committee Democrat Bob Menendez told journalists as he emerged from the briefing. "Tells me volumes about what's really going on here.”

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