Yesterday he CIA concluded, then deliberately leaked, that Saudi Crown Prince MBS ordered the murder of Khashoggi. This was a deliberate well-aimed kick in the balls to Trump and Kushner. Among other things, this makes it nearly impossible for Trump to deport Gulen back to Turkey, where Gulen would certainly be tortured and killed. If Turkey gets Gulen back, then they might be quieter about Khashoggi’s murder, which would help the MBS, Trump, and Kushner. The CIA leak just blew that up in a spectacular manner. If this was the Deep State acting to protect the country, then I’m all for it.
Bill Browder says the CIA conclusion means MBS must be sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky Act. Trump of course is looking for every possible sleazy reason to do nothing about MBS in a desperate attempt to protect himself and Kushner. It won’t work.
Trump had asked for the report, but it is unlikely that he wanted it made public. The CIA is deliberately leaking it. Since the agency is aware that Mohammed Bin Salman is teflon inside Saudi Arabia, it seems probable that the target of the leak is in the US. The member of the administration closest to MBS is Jared Kushner, though Trump himself has admitted that he wants the sale of US arms to MBS more than he wants Khashoggi’s killer brought to justice. The CIA may be attempting to discredit Kushner and to detach Trump from his alliance with the crown prince.