The Ties That Blind: How the U.S.-Saudi Alliance Damages Liberty and Security

The murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has cast a deep shadow over Washington’s relationship with Saudi Arabia. The ever-changing story about how Khashoggi died undermines the Saudi government’s already weak credibility and is illustrative of its extensive record of humans-rights abuses and outright war crimes.

Washington’s solicitous, even enabling, posture toward Saudi Arabia cannot disguise the fact that the Kingdom has never been a reliable U.S. ally. Unfortunately, U.S. leaders ...