1115.org

Sen. Patrick Leahy and Rep. John Conyers and Rep. Henry Waxman (among others) have apparently been going about getting information from the Bush administration the wrong way. Official requests for documents and testimony, followed by threats of subpoenas, followed by subpoenas, may have seemed the proper way to go about it. But what works apparently is to have the Saudis whisper it into the Bush administration’s ear.

The Bush administration is preparing to ask Congress to approve an arms sale package for Saudi Arabia and its neighbors that is expected to eventually total $20 billion at a time when some United States officials contend that the Saudis are playing a counterproductive role in Iraq.

The proposed package of advanced weaponry for Saudi Arabia, which includes advanced satellite-guided bombs, upgrades to its fighters and new naval vessels, has made Israel and some of its supporters in Congress nervous.
[…]
The package and the possible steps to allay Israel’s concerns were described to Congress this week, in an effort by the administration to test the reaction on Capitol Hill before entering into final negotiations on the package with Saudi officials. The Saudis had requested that Congress be told about the planned sale, the officials said, in an effort to avoid the kind of bruising fight on Capitol Hill that occurred in the 1980s over proposed arms sales to the kingdom.