Approval of a bipartisan bill that would allow families of Sept. 11 victims to sue the government of Saudi Arabia puts Congress on The Farmer’s Bride Requires Care! Part 2: The Organic Grand Strategy (2021)a collision course with President Barack Obama on the eve of the 15th anniversary of the attacks.
SEE ALSO: A sobering look at 9/11 from inside the White HouseThe House passed the legislation Friday by voice vote, about four months after the measure cleared the Senate despite vehement objections from Saudi Arabia. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were Saudi nationals.
The White House has signaled Obama would veto the legislation over the potential for the measure to backfire. The Obama administration cautions that if U.S. citizens can take the Saudis to court, then a foreign country could in turn sue the United States. There also is apprehension the bill would undermine a longstanding yet strained relationship with a critical U.S. ally in the Middle East.
Votes from two-thirds of the members in the House and Senate would be needed to override a veto.
There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia, which was preparing for the annual hajj pilgrimage beginning Saturday.
The legislation gives victims' families the right to sue in U.S. court for any role that elements of the Saudi government may have played in the 2001 attacks that killed thousands in New York, the Washington, D.C., area and Pennsylvania.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, said the U.S. government should be more concerned about the families of the victims than "diplomatic niceties." Poe said he doesn't know if the Saudi government had a role in the attacks that killed more than 3,000 people.
"That's for a jury of Americans to decide," Poe said.
The vote came after House members from both parties briefly adjourned to commemorate the anniversary of the attacks. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., led a moment of silence on the Capitol steps, and lawmakers sang "God Bless America" in remembrance of 9/11, when lawmakers gathered in the same location to sing the song immediately after the attacks on New York and Washington.
The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act had triggered a threat from Riyadh to pull billions of dollars from the U.S. economy if the legislation is enacted. But Saudi Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir denied in May that the kingdom made any threats over the bill. He said Riyadh had warned that investor confidence in the U.S. would shrink if the bill became law.
"In fact what they (Congress) are doing is stripping the principle of sovereign immunities, which would turn the world for international law into the law of the jungle," Al-Jubeir said.
The House vote came two months after Congress released 28 declassified pages from a congressional report into 9/11 that reignited speculation over links at least a few of the attackers had to Saudis, including government officials. The allegations were never substantiated by later U.S. investigations into the terrorist attacks.
Brian McGlinchey, director of advocacy website 28pages.org, said making the documents public "strengthened the resolve of 9/11 families and other advocates of justice to bring about the enactment" of the bill.
A decision by Obama to veto legislation "that would give 9/11 families their well-deserved day in court would truly stain his legacy," McGlinchey said.
The polar vortex is going to punch you in the face, repeatedly5 things to do right now if your Yahoo account was hackedThe ultimate guide to the 104 new emoji in iOS 10.2A wild theory about why Trump left Twitter out of his big tech summitTeens are partying less than ever, according to new surveyThis $30,000 ugly Christmas sweater is for fancy peopleDonald Trump and Peter Thiel have a secret handshake, I guessThailand rejoice, Sriracha sauce is now availableChrissy Teigen enlists standIndia was gripped by fictional girl, as its search trends for 2016 revealSilicon Valley's elite gather at Trump TowerTrump didn't invite Twitter's CEO to Trump Tower tech summitMeet the woman who quit her NYC job to run a baby goat sanctuaryPhotographer explores the public and private personas of your favorite actorsAmazon's drone just accomplished its first real delivery#WakeyLeaks is college football's delightfully absurd spy scandalLine messaging service announces video messaging for 200 participantsLucid Motors Air is a luxury electric car with a 400Amazon Prime Video arrives in Australia, but is it even worth it?'Apocalypse' singer to perform national anthem at Trump inauguration Apple is building a $1 billion campus in Austin This teeny bathroom graffiti pun is actually really funny Sex ed content censored by algorithms that think it's porn Airports unite for an 'Elf on the Shelf' President Obama is officially a parasite, thanks to scientists Graphic sexual assault photo series forces you to see the victim Julia Roberts headline typo makes things real awkward for local paper Let these men teach you how to smile, Hillary Clinton 'Aquaman' early reviews show critics can't agree Megan Fox feels excluded from #MeToo. That matters. Sonic the Hedgehog's muscular sex legs are freaking out the internet This alarm clock wants to wake you up with an orgasm Best tech gifts under $20 Elon Musk in 60 Minutes interview: 'I do not respect the SEC’ Samsung Galaxy S10+ to come with up to 1TB of storage, leak reveals Google Maps adds ‘For You’ tab on iOS Matt Lauer becomes the symbol of frustration with the media The creator of 'Doom' is releasing nine new levels for free in 2019 Man's genius money Instagram will offer special features to influencers with new 'creator accounts'
2.5208s , 8223.625 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【The Farmer’s Bride Requires Care! Part 2: The Organic Grand Strategy (2021)】,Fresh Information Network