This incident and Trump’s response reflects that he has zero moral fiber.
Khashoggi was a Virginia resident. He was known as a gentle spirit by his colleagues, but a fierce journalist who was uncompromising in reporting the truth. He worked for the Washington Post. Freedom of the Press is one our sacred tenets as Americans. An attack against any journalist is an attack on all journalists.
The Kingdom knew all that. Yet, they killed him anyway, knowing that President Trump would defer to them and likely provide cover when push comes to shove. That is exactly what happened.
There is a long history of the United States turning a blind eye towards Saudi Arabia abuses, in an effort to forge a relationship with the best option (amidst bad choices) in trying to find a stable partner in the Middle East. “The Devil you know ....”
But, there is no doubt that MBS ordered the kill. US SIGINT has known from the jump what occurred.
Reasonable minds can disagree as to proper sanctions against Saudi Arabia. But, we are not that there yet. Step One is public condemnation by President Trump. He speaks for all of us. He has failed miserably.
These kind of incidents are test balloons. How will the US respond? Who are we? Can we be bought off?
By failing to condemn this brutal act in the strongest terms, how will the world expect us to act when a US citizen is killed in the same manner?