Trump's 'very dangerous' decision to abandon nuclear accord has 'mankind facing full chaos,' Russia says

Following the downing of a Russian warplane by Syrian forces during an Israeli strike, Moscow promises to supply the S-300 missile system to its ally; senior foreign affairs correspondent Greg Palkot reports from London.

Hours after President Trump announced that the U.S. will pull out of a decades-old bilateral nuclear agreement that he said Russia had been "violating for many years," top Russian officials lined up to hit back in no uncertain terms, calling the president's move a "very dangerous" provocation that would lead to "full chaos."
"We condemn the ongoing attempts by blackmail to achieve concessions from Russia," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told a state news agency. "This would be a very dangerous step."
Konstatin Kosachev, who chairs the foreign affairs committee in the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament, wrote on Facebook that Trump's decision meant "mankind is facing full chaos in the nuclear weapons sphere."
And prominent Russian senator Aleksey Pushkov charged that Trump's move meant "United States is bringing the world back to the Cold War," saying the U.S.' withdrawal from the treaty would be a  "massive blow to the entire system of strategic stability in the world." Pushkov had previously criticized claims that Russia meddled in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, arguing those suggestions are part of a plan to continue a "new Cold War."
RUSSIAN NATIONAL CHARGED WITH INTERFERING IN 2018 US ELECTIONS
The 1987 Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty ostensibly prevents both the United States and Russia from possessing, producing or test-flying any ground-launched cruise missile with a range of 300 to 3,400 miles. President Ronald Reagan and General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev inked the deal because of an unfolding crisis.

"We’re not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement."
— President Trump

But the Trump administration has said Russia broke the deal by deploying Novator 9M729 land-based cruise missiles, which can exceed that range and strike NATO countries quickly. The U.S. has previously acknowledged that Russia was violating the treaty in 2012 under the Obama administration, and for their part, Russian officials have also suggested the U.S. hasn't complied with the treaty by placing missiles in European bases.
After speaking at a campaign rally in Elko, Nevada, on Saturday, Trump said the agreement did little more than interfere with U.S. military development.
"We’re going to terminate the agreement, and we’re going to pull out,”  Trump told reporters. "They have been violating it for many years. I don't know why President [Barack] Obama didn't negotiate or pull out. ... We’re not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement and go out and do weapons, and we’re not allowed to."
ANALYSIS: PUTIN ATE TRUMP'S LUNCH AT PREVIOUS SUMMIT IN HELSINKI
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg concurred with Trump's assessment earlier this month. (The Defense Department concluded in February that Russia was actively violating its arms treaty agreements, as well.)
"This treaty abolishes a whole category of weapons and is a crucial element of our security. Now this treaty is in danger because of Russia's actions," Stoltenberg said. "After years of denials, Russia recently acknowledged the existence of a new missile system, called 9M729. Russia has not provided any credible answers on this new missile. All allies agree that the most plausible assessment would be that Russia is in violation of the treaty. It is therefore urgent that Russia addresses these concerns in a substantial and transparent manner."
On Saturday, Trump went on to say he would be open to a new, similar agreement only if Russia and China signed on and demonstrated a sincere commitment.
“We'll have to develop those weapons, unless Russia comes to us, and China comes to us, and they all come to us and they say ‘let's really get smart and let's none of us develop those weapons," Trump said.
UK Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson forcefully backed the U.S. in an interview with The Financial Times, saying that Russia had made a "mockery" of the agreement.
“Our close and long-term ally, of course, is the United States and we will be absolutely resolute with the United States in hammering home a clear message that Russia needs to respect the treaty obligation that it signed," Williamson said.
GORBACHEV: TRUMP, PUTIN SHOULD FOCUS ON ARMS CONTROL
But Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called Trump's pullout a "big, big mistake" on "Fox News Sunday," echoing comments he made Saturday on Twitter.
Trump's announcement comes as National Security Adviser John Bolton makes his way to Moscow on Monday and Tuesday, before a trip to countries elsewhere in the region. Bolton is expected to discuss a range of issues with his Russian counterparts, including Russia's deployment of a S-300 missile defense system in Syria, the recent poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britian, and the nuclear accord.
Also expected to headline discussions are renegotiations of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), which is slated to expire in 2021. Signed by Obama and former Russian president Dmitri Medvedev, the deal limits the number of strategic warheads both countries are allowed to deploy.
Trump and Putin are expected to attend another high-level summit, following their widely-criticized meeting in Helsinki, Finland in July. Critics charged Trump was too ready to accept Putin's denials of any meddling in U.S. elections.
"This is the most severe crisis in nuclear arms control since the 1980s,” Malcolm Chalmers, the deputy director general of the Royal United Services Institute, said in an interview. “If the INF treaty collapses, and with the New Start treaty on strategic arms due to expire in 2021, the world could be left without any limits on the nuclear arsenals of nuclear states for the first time since 1972.”

Saudi crown prince is 'gonna have to be replaced' amid 'insulting' explanation for Khashoggi's death, Rand Paul says

The Saudi government's overnight announcement that Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi died in a fistfight at its consulate in Turkey was "insulting," and provided another reason Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman is "gonna have to be replaced," Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told "Fox News Sunday."
Authorities in Saudi Arabia said 18 suspects were in custody and intelligence officials had been fired over the episode, weeks after they initially claimed Khashoggi had left their embassy unharmed. Turkish officials have said an "assassination squad" from the Kingdom, including an official from Prince Mohammed's entourage, and an "autopsy expert" flew in ahead of time and laid in wait for Khashoggi at the consulate.
Khashoggi, a prominent journalist and royal court insider for decades in Saudi Arabia, had written columns for The Washington Post critical of Prince Mohammed and the Kingdom's direction while living in self-imposed exile in the U.S. He had advocated for democracy in Saudi Arabia and supported Islamist politics.
"Preliminary investigations conducted by the Public Prosecution showed that the suspects had traveled to Istanbul to meet with the citizen Jamal Khashoggi as there were indications of the possibility of his returning back to the country," a statement by the Saudi government read. "Discussions took place with the citizen Jamal Khashoggi during his presence in the consulate of the Kingdom in Istanbul by the suspects (that) did not go as required and developed in a negative way, leading to a fistfight. The brawl led to his death and their attempt to conceal and hide what happened."
The Saudi statement didn't implicate the heir-apparent of the world's largest oil exporter, and cited no evidence for its claims beyond anonymous sources. Paul, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that the government's explanation didn't add up.
"I think it’s insulting to anyone who’s analyzing this with any kind of intelligent background to think that, oh, a fistfight led to a dismemberment with a bone saw," Paul said, referring to unconfirmed reports that the Saudi squad at the embassy included a man toting a bone saw.
He added: "I think we should put this brazen attack, this brazen murder in context with Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has basically over the decades been the largest state sponsor of radical Islam and violent jihad. They sponsor thousands of madrassas that teach hatred of Christians and Jews and Hindus around the world. So this isn’t the first instance, this is just another in the line of long instances of Saudi insults to the civilized world."
Paul said the solution was for new leadership in Saudi Arabia -- a proposal echoed by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who said on Fox News last week that Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman "has got to go."
"I feel certain that the crown prince was involved and that he directed this," Paul told host Chris Wallace on Sunday. "And that’s why I think we cannot continue to have relations with him. And so I think he’s gonna have to be replaced, frankly."
President Trump has said he has no plans to cancel the U.S.' billion-dollar arms deal with the Saudis, saying "we would be punishing ourselves" by killing the arrangement, which he called a "tremendous order for our companies." Saudi Arabia could simply turn around and purchase weapons from another supplier if the U.S. pulled out, Trump said.
In a statement published by the state-run Saudi Press Agency, the kingdom warned that if it "receives any action" form the U.S., " it will respond with greater action, and that the Kingdom's economy has an influential and vital role in the global economy."
However, Paul said, even imposing possible sanctions against Saudi Arabia and pulling out of the arms deal may be insufficient if the country's behavior doesn't change.
"I’m not even calling for sanctions really against Saudi Arabia, in general. I don’t think we should quit trading with Saudi Arabia. I think we should specifically quit aiding and abetting them in an aggressive war in Yemen ... where tens of thousands of civilians are being killed. It’s about them spreading hatred of Christians and Jews and Hindus throughout the world."
He continued: "I don’t think we need the Saudis; the Saudis need us much more than we need them. We have incredible leverage: Their air force is entirely American planes. They can’t last a couple of months without parts and mechanics to help run their air force. We train their pilots; they are completely dependent on us. We need to tell them to behave."
Separately, Paul criticzied Trump's decision to pull out of a decades-old nuclear agreement with Russia, calling it a "big, big mistake." Britain has voiced support for the Trump administration's decision, saying Russia had been violating the arrangement for y ears.

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Migrant Caravan Clash With Mexican Police, Break Down Border Fence

Migrants tired of waiting to cross into Mexico, climb a border bridge fence to jump into the Suchiate River, in Tecun Uman, Guatemala, Friday, Oct. 19, 2018. Some of the migrants traveling in a mass caravan towards the U.S.-Mexico border organized a rope brigade to ford its muddy waters. (AP Photo/Oliver de Ros)

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UPDATED 5:05 PM PT — Fri. Oct. 19, 2018

Thousands of migrants traveling in a caravan toward the U.S. clash with Mexican police, as they break down a border fence.
A group of migrants breached the Mexico-Guatemala border Friday, according to reports.
Multiple people rushed through and towards the border bridge, before Mexican police used pepper spray to stop them.
Despite the chaos, Mexican officials say roughly 100 migrants a day will be allowed into the country to have their asylum requests reviewed.

2 convicted Democrats seek political office while behind bars

Ron Reynolds, a sitting Texas state representative running for another term behind bars, is expected to be re-elected since nobody is opposing him. (Ron Reynolds)

Two Democrats are running for a political office despite being behind bars, with one of them expected to win in Texas and celebrate in jail.
Ron Reynolds, a sitting Texas state representative, is running for another term. He is expected to win because nobody is opposing him.
He’s a disbarred Missouri City personal injury lawyer convicted in 2015 on multiple misdemeanor charges for illegally soliciting people to his law practice, KPRC-TV reported.
He was sentenced to a year in jail but later released on an appellate bond. But last month, the appeal was rejected and Reynolds had to return to jail.

Texas State rep. Ron Reynolds

The Texas state law doesn’t prohibit individuals with misdemeanor convictions to run for office.
The convicted Texas lawmaker boasts of being supported by Democratic Senate Hopeful Beto O’Rourke, who’s trying to unseat Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. He even appeared in a campaign ad with O'Rourke, KPRC-TV reported. O’Rourke’s campaign didn’t distance from the lawmaker and said they trust the electorate.
Reynolds denies that being in jail would interfere with his day-to-day job as a lawmaker, despite expecting to be detained when the state Congress commences in January.
“Rep. Reynolds has full confidence that his experienced staff will be able to handle any immediate needs of his constituents, during his 4-6 month absence,” read the statement from Reynolds, the Texas Tribune reported last month.

A photo from the Whitfield County Sheriff's Office shows Steven Lamar Foster, Democratic candidate for Congress in Georgia's 14th District. (Whitfield County Sheriff's Office)

Steve Foster is a Georgia Democrat running for U.S. Congress, but he may not be what the party regards as part of the “blue wave” of Democratic candidates.
The former doctor was arrested last year for driving under influence and shouted “I hate this country” during the arrest, WSB-TV reported. He was sentenced last summer and is spending six months in county jail.
Foster seeks to unseat Republican Rep. Tom Graves, a popular lawmaker in Georgia’s 14th District who won with 75 percent of the vote in 2012.
But that doesn’t discourage Foster from continuing to run the campaign. “Look, I’m not withdrawing,” he recently told the Associated Press.

Hillary Clinton gets asked ‘painfully scripted’ questions on Colbert: report

A segment featuring Hillary Clinton aired on Friday's 'The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.'  ('Late Show' Twitter)

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appeared on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" on Friday and was lobbed 'painfully scripted questions' and gave 'painfully scripted answers' during a segment called 'Just One Question," Mediaite reported.
Colbert, the host, said his staffers get excited when someone as knowledgeable as Clinton is in the building, so he gave them the OK to ask the former presidential hopeful a single question. The segment was edited and the workers were asked in various locations around the building. Clinton was inside a studio.
One assistant asked Clinton what her proudest moment was while she served as secretary of state. Clinton responded that it was working with U.S. diplomats.
A writer asked if she preferred 'The Rock' or Vin Diesel -- giving her an opportunity to showcase her knowledge about the characters in "Fast and Furious."
"What a tough question," she says. "The "Fast and Furious" movies prove that both are masters of high-octane action."
The audience laughs.
"And while 'The Rock' is an indispensable part of the later films, Vin Diesel is really the heart at the center of the Toretto family, and in the end, everyone is better off to look past what divides them and work together. You know, I like to say, stronger together."
The writer appeared to be happy with her answer and said, "You're a smart lady."
The audience laughed.
"Stronger Together" was a book written by Clinton and her former running mate Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.
Clinton was asked if she'd make a prediction on the 2020 election and said she joked, saying she'd save that insight for her upcoming book, "What Will Happen: A Book of Predictions: Hillary Clinton and Paul the Psychic Octopus."
Her appearance on the friendly show may be another sign that she intends on staying relevant prior to 2020.
A longtime Clinton adviser is hinting that she may have one more presidential run brewing -- a statement greeted with glee from the White House.
"It's somewhere between highly unlikely and zero," Philippe Reines told Politico about the possibility that Clinton runs again in 2020, "but it's not zero."

Protesters greet Pelosi with expletives during Florida campaign stop

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was confronted during a campaign stop in Coral Gables, Fla., on Wednesday, with protesters cursing at her and calling her a communist.
The incident was caught on camera, showing Pelosi calmly entering Florida Democratic House candidate Donna Shalala’s headquarters as she gets surrounded by the protesters. She did not engage with them.
“Look at Nancy Pelosi right here – f---ing communist. Get the f--- out of here. F--- you and your f--king Democrats,” the protesters shouted in both English and Spanish while carrying anti-communist signs.
“You don’t belong here,” one person was also heard yelling. “Socialism sucks,” said another.
GRAPHIC LANGUAGE
The video of the confrontation was uploaded on YouTube and titled “Nancy Pelosi was heckled at a Miami Restaurant by Trump Supporting Cuban Americans,” but it actually occurred outside the campaign stop for Shalala, The Washington Post reported.
The protest was organized by Nelson Diaz, the chairman of the Republican Party in Miami-Dade County, the Post reported. Some protesters reportedly wore signs of Proud Boys, a notorious right-wing group that is often accused of participating in violent scuffles with their opposition.
FLORIDA DEM CANDIDATE UNDER FIRE FOR EVENT INVITING REP WHO PRAISED CASTRO
The protest was in response to Pelosi attending an event with Shalala that was also supposed to feature California Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee, a liberal lawmaker who drew the fury from the local Cuban community for praising the late Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
Lee once said after Castro’s death that “we need to stop and pause and mourn his loss,” and called it “very sad for the Cuban people.”
Shalala’s campaign eventually dropped Lee after the outcry and the event included just Pelosi.
The hostile episode, which followed months of public harassment of mostly GOP lawmakers, drew bipartisan condemnation.
“I don’t agree with Nancy Pelosi’s agenda, but this is absolutely the wrong way to express those disagreements,” tweeted Republican Rep. Steve Scalise, who last year was seriously wounded after a shooting at a congressional baseball team practice. “If you want to stop her policies, don’t threaten her, VOTE! That’s how we settle our differences.”
A spokesman for Pelosi, Drew Hammill, told the Post that Republicans and President Trump are responsible for inciting such mob behavior.
“It is deeply sad but unsurprising that we now see that ugliness rearing its head,” she said. “It is stunning that Republicans have the gall to call courageous survivors of sexual assault a ‘mob’, at the same time they incite and condone violent actions like this. Republicans must condemn this vile and dangerous conduct, and stop the reckless and dangerous rhetoric that encourages it."

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Trump praises 'tough cookie' Montana rep who 'body slammed' reporter last year, urges voters to 'never forget Benghazi'

President Trump hosted his third wide-ranging rally of the midterm season in Montana on Thursday night, where he urged voters to "never forget Benghazi" and praised Republican Rep. Greg Gianforte, who pleaded guilty to body slamming a reporter last year, as a "tough cookie."

Only three other sitting presidents have ever visited Missoula, where between 6,000 and 8,000 people were attending the event at the Minuteman Aviation hangar, according to The Misssoulian.
"I love these hangars," Trump said at the opening of the rally, as the crowd chanted "USA!" He continued: "I love a hangar. There's nothing like a hangar. You get out of the plane, you walk over, and you have massive crowds." Later, Trump remarked repeatedly that he was underneath a "beautiful, beautiful, big sky."
He quickly turned to Gianforte, advising the crowd: "Never wrestle him. Any guy that can do a body slam, he's my kind of guy."
Gianforte, who is running against Democrat Kathleen Williams, was required to undergo anger management classes for pummeling Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs the day before his election. He was sentenced to community service and fined $385 last year.

"Never wrestle him. Any guy that can do a body slam, he's my kind of guy."
— President Trump on Rep. Greg Gianforte

Trump continued: "I shouldn't say this -- it's nothing to be embarrassed about. I was in Rome with a lot of the leaders of other countries ... and I heard about it, and we endorsed Greg very early, but I had heard that he had body slammed a reporter. And he was way up, and I said, and this was the day of the election or just before -- 'This is terrible, he's going to lose the election.' And then I said, 'Wait a minute, I know Montana pretty well. I think it might help him.' And it did. He's a great guy. Tough cookie."
The president also took aim at his opponent in the 2016 presidential campaign, Hillary Clinton, criticizing her for her email practices and telling the crowd to "Never Forget Benghazi."
His comments came days after a federal judge excoriated the State Department for "lying" by presenting the court with "clearly false" affidavits documenting their review of Clinton's emails and communications concerning the 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
A State Department lawyer acknowledged that the government's review of the materials could be considered inadequate.
'SHOCKED', 'DUMBFOUNDED' FEDERAL JUDGE UNLOADS ON STATE DEPARTMENT LAWYER OVER CLINTON PROBE 'LIE'
With just weeks until the pivotal midterm elections, the president was primarily seeking to convince Montana to replace his longtime bitter rival, incumbent Sen. Democratic Jon Tester, with GOP state auditor Matt Rosendale. But his rally was also part of his long-running effort to help preserve Republicans' tenuous holds on the Senate and House of Representatives.
"This will be an election of Kavanaugh, the caravan, law and order, and common sense," Trump said, referring to his successful Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh and a Central American migrant caravan approaching the U.S. border with Mexico.
U.S. and Mexican officials have agreed on a plan to handle the caravan, a senior administration official told Fox News on Thursday.
"I just want to thank the Mexican government because they're stopping it hopefully before it even gets to Mexico," Trump said to applause. "As you know, I'm willing to send the military to defend our southern border if necessary, all caused by the illegal immigration onslaught brought by the Democrats because they refuse to acknowledge or change the laws. And they figure everyone who's coming in is going to vote Democrat."
"I have caused the problem," Trump went on. "Because I have created such an incredible economy, I have created so many jobs. I have made this country, with you, so great, that everybody wants to come in. So they're all pouring in -- or trying to."
Losing one or both chambers in November's midterm elections, Trump himself has warned, could not only compromise border security and complicate his legislative agenda -- which top Republicans recently said might include another attempt at fully repealing ObamaCare -- but also empower Democrats to open a series of investigations and potentially even impeachment proceedings.
Trump emphasized that possibility in a previous rally in Montana just last month.
"I don't even bring it up," Trump told the crowd. "Because I view it as something that, you know, they like to use the impeach word. Impeach Trump. Maxine Waters, 'We will impeach him.' But he didn't do anything wrong. 'It doesn't matter, we will impeach him. We will impeach.' But I say, how do you impeach somebody that's doing a great job that hasn't done anything wrong?"
DEMS POISED TO MAKE HISTORIC IMPEACHMENT PUSH AFTER MIDTERMS
Fox News currently rates the Senate race in Montana, a state Trump won over Hillary Clinton by double digits in 2016, as lean Democrat -- and in the final weeks of the campaign season, there are renewed signs that Trump has made it his personal mission to push the state back into the Republicans' column.
Earlier this year, Trump called for Tester’s resignation for his role in torpedoing Dr. Ronny Jackson's nomination to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs. Jackson had been besieged by unproven and disputed allegations compiled by Tester’s office concerning his prescription-drug practices and use of alcohol. (Tester is the top Democrat on the Republican-controlled Senate Veteran Affairs Committee.)
The president repeated that line of attack this week, saying that Tester had treated Jackson more unfairly than Democrats who fiercely opposed Kavanaugh's nomination. Democrats promoted a series of uncorroborated sexual misconduct and rape accusations against the then-nominee.
"Ever since his vicious and totally false statements about Admiral Ron Jackson, the highly respected White House Doctor for Obama, Bush & me, Senator John Tester looks to be in big trouble in the Great State of Montana!" Trump wrote on Twitter Wednesday. "He behaved worse than the Democrat Mob did with Justice K!"
At Thursday's rally, Trump simply called Tester "disgraceful" and accused him of leading a "mob" to unfairly destroy Jackson's reputation.
JON TESTER CAMPAIGNS ON HUNTING, BUT HASN'T HAD HUNTING LICENSE IN SIX YEARS
"Tester said things about him that were a disgrace," Trump said, adding that "a series of lies" had ultimately derailed Jackson. He compared Jackson to Kavanaugh, saying both men were respected and had been wrongly maligned.
"The only thing keeping Tester's campaign alive, are millions and millions and millions of dollars from outside liberals and radical leftists who couldn't care less about Montana," Trump said. He added that Tester opposed his tax bill and wants "open borders."
He added that his wife, First Lady Melania Trump, was "so cool you wouldn't believe it" during a mid-flight scare this week, when smoke filled the cabin of her military jet.
Trump wrapped up the event by mocking Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren for "making a fool out of herself" by releasing the results of a disputed DNA test she claimed proved she likely had a recent Native American ancestor.
ANALYSIS: ELIZABETH WARREN'S DNA TEST IS A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
"She has so little Indian blood -- she has none -- that I can no longer call her Pocahontas," Trump taunted.
Thursday's rally comes two days after the Marine Corps veteran who served as Montana's GOP chairman from 2009 to 2015 warned potential protesters on Facebook that Trump supporters tend to carry guns.

"All you protesters ... This is a concealed and open carry state, and we know how to use em."
— Fmr. Montana GOP chair Will Deschamps

“Also all you protesters, show up as well," the former state Republican chairman, Will Deschamps, wrote on the social media site. "This is a concealed and open carry state and we know how to use em."
He ended his message by noting that he is “USMC trained,” referring to his military service.
Trump has held more than two dozen rallies to benefit GOP candidates, and more than 350 rallies since beginning his presidential bid in 2015.
Trump's campaign has said it is paying all the bills for the rallies, including the costs of fueling and using Air Force One to ferry the president and his staff to and from the events.
The billionaire businessman can apparently afford it, and then some: New filings with the Federal Election Commission show Trump's campaign has already hauled in more than $100 million for his 2020 reelection effort, an unprecedented sum that owes to his early start on the campaign trail.
Thursday's rally was Trump's first stop in a three-date tour of western states that will include Arizona and Nevada.

While ripping Trump, media and Hollywood rush to cut ties to Saudis

The media and political criticism of President Trump for his handling of the crisis with Saudi Arabia is growing louder.
And I understand why his approach — slow it down, wait and see, we do a lot of business with the Saudis — is upsetting those who are outraged about the apparently gruesome murder of Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi.
But the larger picture is that a whole lot of important people in this country have gotten cozy with the Saudis, despite their horrendous record on human rights and the treatment of women.
From Washington to Los Angeles, they have engaged in the typical rationalizations for representing a sleazy regime, as long as the oil money kept the coffers full.
And now, with the kingdom unable to explain why Khashoggi walked into the Saudi consulate in Istanbul and never walked out, many of them are embarrassed.
The giant Hollywood firm Endeavor is giving the Saudis back a $400 million investment, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
The CEO, Ari Emanuel, brother of Rahm, made the decision to return the dough, provided by a Saudi investment fund overseen by Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince who is suspected of either approving or acquiescing in the hit squad dispatched to deal with Khashoggi.
But Emanuel did this under pressure from high-profile clients of the company's WME agency, which represents such journalists as Ronan Farrow, Mika Brzezinski, Chris Matthews, and Scott Pelley. "Had Endeavor kept the money," the story says, "it likely would have led to departures."
The company declined to comment, but Farrow tweeted: "This was absolutely the right thing to do and I'm glad Ari Emanuel addressed it quickly."
Other Hollywood outfits still doing business with the Saudis include AMC, Imax and World Wrestling Entertainment, which either had no comment or say they're "monitoring the situation" — corporate-speak for doing nothing unless the pressure gets to be too great.
The administration made headlines when it pulled Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin from next week's big-deal Saudi investment conference. But under this harsh spotlight, lots of major media organizations are bailing as well. These include the owner of the L.A. Times, the CEO of Viacom and CNBC anchor Andrew Ross Sorkin.
What's more, CNN, CNBC, the New York Times, Bloomberg and Financial Ties have all withdrawn as sponsors of the conference. Those kinds of partnerships are what has lent the Saudi regime a sheen of respectability over the years.
And then there are the Beltway lobbyists.
Three major firms — the Glover Park Group, the Harbour Group and the BGR Group — have ended agreements they had to represent the kingdom. Those contracts were worth a combined $3.7 million.
But the Saudis, who spend $6 million a year on lobbying and promotion, still have deals with the likes of the blue-chip firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and the McKeon Group, headed by former House Armed Services Chairman Buck McKeon.
The Washington Post yesterday devoted its entire op-ed page to Khashoggi's final column. In recalling that a Saudi friend has been jailed for five years for "supposed comments contrary to the Saudi establishment," Khashoggi wrote that "Arab governments have been given free rein to continue silencing the media at an increasing rate."
Those are chilling words. And the question for the president, the media companies, the lobbyists and others who deal with Saudi Arabia is whether much will change once the Khashoggi controversy inevitably fades.