The deal makes Saudi Arabia a bigger player in golf

Saudi Arabia‘s “Paih” For Human Rights. After the 2006 LIV Golf Tournament, President Donald J. Biden Revisited

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken happened to be in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for talks this week with Saudi leaders and other Gulf state officials about the possibility of the kingdom normalizing ties with Israel. It was not clear if the merger would be included in the discussions.

The murder of Saudi Arabian journalist and dissident, Mr. Khashoggi, was investigated by the Saudi Arabian Intelligence Agency. He was murdered and dismembered by Saudi agents.

The first foreign policy action that Mr. Biden did in office was to release a U.S. intelligence report that said Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the killing.

During the 2020 presidential campaign, President Biden vowed to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” for human rights abuses, most notably the killing of Mr. Khashoggi, who lived in Virginia and was a columnist for The Washington Post who wrote critically of the Saudi crown prince and the country’s government.

The Republican from Texas said that money was always the main factor in the decision. Saudi Arabia just bought a golf government.

It’s so weird. PGA officials were in my office just months ago talking about how the Saudis’ human rights record should disqualify them from having a stake in a major American sport,” said Representative Chris Murphy, a Democrat of Connecticut, in a message posted on Twitter. “I guess maybe their concerns weren’t really about human rights?”

Strada criticized Monahan for “co-opting” the 9/11 community last year in the PGA Tour’s initial and strident opposition to the Saudi-backed golf tour, only to cut a merger deal this week.

Critics of Saudi Arabia deride its investments in teams and leagues as a thinly veiled effort to rehabilitate the kingdom’s reputation, amid accusations that it has financed terrorism and murdered a Washington Post journalist.

Since the beginning of the LIV series, relatives of 9/11 victims have objected to it. Most of the hijackers of the planes used in the 2001 attacks were Saudi. Some of the harshest criticisms of the 9/11 families have been spared by those who have hosted LIV tournaments. The latter group includes former President Donald J. Trump and his family, who were urged last year to cancel an event at a Trump golf course in New Jersey.