Issue October 26, 2018 - The Week Magazine (2024)

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Main storiesEditor’s letterMorality is such an encumbrance. Once any shame is shed, dilemmas dissolve; everything gets so much easier. Take the quandary presented by Saudi Arabia. For decades, U.S. presidents have resorted to extreme realpolitik in order to treat the Saudis as a valued ally—a status bestowed on the sheikhs by the billions of barrels of oil under their sands, and the broad influence their enormous wealth has purchased. The oilmen of the Bush family treated the Saudis like cousins, even after 9/11; President Obama irritated the Saudis with talk of human rights and democracy, but in the end backed their brutal war against Yemen and offered to sell them $115 billion in arms. President Trump has taken realpolitik to a new level. Virtually no one believes the Saudi royals’ risible claim…2 min

Main storiesSaudis deny Khashoggi killing as evidence mountsWhat happenedPresident Trump defended Saudi Arabia this week against charges that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, saying he’ll await results of the Saudis’ own investigation. After speaking with Prince Mohammed and King Salman, Trump said that both men made “strong denials” of any involvement in Khashoggi’s assassination, and he suggested that “rogue killers” may have been involved. Turkish authorities say they have audiotapes proving that Khashoggi—a Saudi native and legal U.S. resident—was tortured, killed, and dismembered minutes after he entered the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago. A team of 15 Saudi agents was allegedly waiting for him there, according to Turkish authorities. The Saudi assassins allegedly cut off Khashoggi’s fingers while he was alive and then beheaded him,…3 min

Main storiesIt wasn’t all badAfter Hurricane Michael smashed into the Florida Panhandle last week, teams of award-winning barbecue pitmasters from across the nation rushed to the most devastated communities to help feed survivors and rescuers. In Tallahassee and Panama City, volunteers with Operation BBQ Relief—a Missouri-based nonprofit—were serving up some 30,000 pork, beef, and turkey meals a day. They’ll likely keep that pace going for several weeks, until local grocery stores and restaurants reopen. “What we really provide is hope,” volunteer David Marks said, “at the worst time in someone’s life.”Adam Gorlitsky is paralyzed from the waist down—and has just walked himself into the record books. Using a battery-powered robotic exoskeleton that helps move his hips and legs, the 29-year-old Oregonian was able to complete the 13.1-mile Portland half-marathon in 20 hours. That’s the…1 min

Main storiesGOP winning legal battle over voting restrictionsWhat happenedA series of restrictive voting policies backed by Republicans were upheld by state and federal courts last week—rulings that could potentially affect the outcomes of several close midterm elections. In Arkansas, the state’s highest court upheld an anti-voter fraud law requiring voters to show photo ID before voting. In Ohio, a federal judge rejected an attempt by a voting rights group to stop the state’s purge of repeat nonvoters from its rolls, which critics say disproportionately affects minorities and the poor. The U.S. Supreme Court also upheld a North Dakota law that requires voters to present an ID with their residential address listed, not a P.O. box. Tribal activists said the law discriminates against Native Americans, many of whom live on reservations and don’t have conventional addresses. Democratic Sen.…2 min

Main storiesA confident Trump unleashes on 60 MinutesWhat happenedIn a combative interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes, President Trump this week insisted that the cause of climate change was unknown, defended his immigration policy, and hinted that his defense secretary could soon be forced out. Appearing much more self-assured than his last time on the program, shortly after being elected—“He is truly president. And you felt it,” interviewer Leslie Stahl said afterward—Trump gave little ground to critics. He passed up a chance to criticize Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, claiming he’s tough with Putin in private and saying he has “good chemistry” with North Korea’s leader. The president backed off calling climate change a “hoax,” but speculated the climate would “change back.” Trump, who mimicked Brett Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford at a recent rally,…2 min

Controversy of the weekIncivility: Are Democrats to blame?“What the heck has happened to the Democratic Party?” said Frank Pavone in WashingtonExaminer.com. Democrats have always had an extremist fringe of wannabe “revolutionaries,” but in recent weeks, the party’s leaders have also sounded like radicals. Hillary Clinton last week defended the harassment of Republican senators during the confirmation fight over Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, saying, “You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for.” Not to be outdone, former Attorney General Eric Holder called on liberals to replace Michelle Obama’s famous maxim “When they go low, we go high” with the more aggressive “When they go low, we kick them.” Holder claims he wasn’t being literal, said David Harsanyi in TheFederalist.com, but Democrats really are acting like “a mob.” In recent…3 min

Issue October 26, 2018 - The Week Magazine (2024)

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