Trump: A ‘Sad Thing’ if Saudi Prince Had Jamal Khashoggi Killed

President Trump on Thursday morning addressed the report that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered an operation to lure Washington Post contributor and vocal critic Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia and “detain” him, telling Fox & Friends that it would be a “sad thing” if that report turned out to be true. Referencing the entire mystery surrounding Khashoggi’s disappearance, and the rumors that he was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul by as many as 15 intel agents, Trump promised the hosts that “We’re looking into it very seriously” and “we’re being very tough.” Trump appeared to doubt the kingdom’s claim that Khashoggi left the consulate of his own free will: “He went in, and it doesn’t look like came out,” he said. “It certainly doesn’t look like he’s around.” And while he claimed that U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia are “excellent,” he also railed against the nation for not paying the U.S. for “protection.” “There would be no Saudi Arabia if there wasn’t a United States,” he said. “We should be paid.” When asked specifically what he would do if the report about Mohammed bin Salman—a close ally of Trump adviser/son-in-law Jared Kushner—was true, Trump responded that “I have to find out what happened. And we’re probably getting closer than you might think,” later adding that “I don’t like it. No good.”