He doesn't "love powerful autocrats." Even knowing your history, I'm still surprised that you can type that. They are his opponents, in every respect. He knows that there is no such thing as a "friend" on the geopolitical stage. There are only allies, and allies are those countries which have a common interest, and they are only allies as long as those common interests last. The only reason we (Bush, Obama, Trump) tolerate the Saudis is that they are a strategic asset to us. Look at the cold war. Would you say that Eisenhower, Kennedy, LBJ, etc. loved the despots that they allied with against the Soviets? Of course not (even if they said nice things about them). But, those despots were strategic assets for the United States against an existential threat.