Rand Paul wants to kill $650M missile sale to Saudi Arabia

Responsible Statecraft’s Kelley Beaucar Vlahos writes, “Rand Paul’s office told RS today that the Republican senator is readying a joint resolution of disapproval to stop the Biden Administration’s expected sale of $650 million worth of 'defensive' air-to-air missiles or AMRAAMs, as well as 596 missile launches to Saudi Arabia, as announced on Nov. 4.

'A message needs to be sent to Saudi Arabia that we don’t approve of their war in Yemen,' Paul said in a statement to Responsible Statecraft.

.@RandPaul is readying a joint resolution of disapproval to stop the Biden Administration’s expected sale of $650 million worth of “defensive” air-to-air missiles or AMRAAMs—as well as 596 missile launchers—to Saudi Arabia. https://t.co/rGm7naQDMQ

— Quincy Institute (@QuincyInst) November 17, 2021

The news was also confirmed in an Intercept report this afternoon in which Paul said he aims to file a privileged motion to stop the export, which would guarantee an immediate floor vote on whether to disapprove the sale. That vote could occur within the next two weeks, according to the Intercept’s Sara Sirota.

Interestingly, the article centered around Paul’s interest in generating support from his Democratic colleagues, particularly those who have typically been on the same page when it comes to U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia and its Gulf state neighbor, UAE. But as the report suggests, Biden’s fellow Dems aren’t hopping on the bandwagon right away, at least not yet.

Sen. Bernie Sanders did not show outright skepticism. He told the Intercept that he has yet to see the details, but he’s 'not unsympathetic' to what Paul is trying to do.”

Read the entire column.