“Mister President, you paint my nation in much too harsh a light. Groups such as Al Qaeda are banned in Saudi Arabia, and these terrorists have fled us, to other places where they can hide in rocks and caves from civilized people. My country categorically denies any participation in such hateful actions, and I am surprised you would consider this of us.”
Colin Powell was simply sitting there watching us, and wondering whether I was giving myself enough rope to properly hang myself. In for a penny, in for a pound. I kept going. “Unfortunately, Mister Ambassador, my country has a saying. Perhaps you have heard of it — actions speak louder than words. The actions of your nation are not the actions of a friend or an ally. What am I to think, and what is the average American to think, of these actions?”
“Mister President, for many years now our nations have been allied, and we have not allowed minor differences to detract from our joint mission of bringing peace to the entire region. Surely you cannot doubt the resolve of Saudi Arabia in this noble endeavor,” he countered.
“Mister Ambassador, I sincerely hope that you are not categorizing the deaths of 3,200 Americans and an American president as a minor difference! I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and trust that was simply a poor choice of words!” interjected Secretary Powell.
Bin Sultan turned to face the Secretary and replied, “I do not mean to take this lightly, Secretary Powell, but the fact is that we have had differences in the past, and will probably continue to do so. Certainly your nation’s continued and uncritical support of Israel over the overwhelming and legitimate rights of the Palestinian people is at least as serious a concern to us as any concerns you might have as to my nation’s religious beliefs. Regardless, we have stood together in the past, and will continue standing together in the future.”
“Regardless, sir, we now come to the crux of the matter. As you are aware, the United States has not had an ambassador to the Kingdom since Ambassador Fowler left in May. Absent any change in the policies and behavior of your Kingdom, our replacement for Ambassador Fowler is being held in a state of abeyance for the foreseeable future. Inasmuch as this seems an inequitable state of affairs, we are requesting that you return to Saudi Arabia, to discuss with your government ways in which America’s trust in your nation can be rebuilt,” I told him.
The Ambassador was possessed of an excellent poker face, but this took him by surprise. “You are declaring me persona non grata!” he exclaimed. Being declared persona non grata, also known as being PNGed, was a diplomatic version of being told to get out of town, usually within 48 hours. Afterwards, they theoretically lose their diplomatic status and can be arrested.
“No, of course not. I have no wish for this to get any more ugly than it has to. However, I do think, and my advisers agree with me, that it would be best if you were to go home and discuss measures to reassure us in the future, so that your successor can someday return and we can put this painful period behind us.” Your successor, because you won’t be found acceptable. “Perhaps a convenient diplomatic illness?” I suggested.
“I am most disappointed, Mister President. I have watched you for many years, and throughout your history you have always been a voice of reason when others around you beat the drum for war. Yet here you are waging war on Islam, bombing countries that had nothing to do with what happened to your nation, and acting the madman. Certainly that is the impression my countrymen will take from such actions. They will not want to do business with people who cannot be trusted to behave according to international standards,” he said. Business, code word for raising oil prices.
I barked out a laugh. “Mister Ambassador, you obviously have drawn some very poor conclusions about me. I would suggest that once you land back in the Kingdom, you open your eyes and see what your nation has wrought on the world, and consider what the consequences of your actions are. We will be happy to reconsider things at some future date, but only if there is reason to believe that the Kingdom has changed its practices.”
I stood up, followed by Colin, and then finally, slowly, by the Ambassador. He looked at me, and said, “I cannot ask you to swerve from this course you seem determined to follow?”
“It is a course forced upon us by others, sir, not one I would have chosen on my own.” I reached out and he reluctantly shook my hand. “Farewell, Mister Ambassador. I wish you a safe trip home.”
“Farewell, Mister President.” He followed Colin Powell out the door.
Colin was back a few minutes later. “Well, I have to say, when you decide to piss somebody off, you do it in a big way. Like I said earlier, there are going to be consequences, and they are going to land in your lap.”
I shrugged. “So be it. I think they are survivable. They are pissed, but they don’t have all that many weapons to use against us. They will undoubtedly reduce the amount of oil they pump, so that is going to raise prices. That won’t be good for the economy, but that is taking a major hit anyway. It is going to take years for the airlines to recover, and some of them won’t. If oil prices rise, it will make it much more palatable to raise fuel efficiency standards on cars and trucks. In addition, it will spur oil and gas drilling here at home. Are you aware of just how much natural gas they are discovering right beneath our feet here in America? Once they figure out how to drill it and get it out safely, we’ll be able to convert every coal fired plant in this country to natural gas. Who needs the EPA to regulate emissions when the power companies will do it for them! The Saudis will cut back on purchases of our weapons? Fine! Who ever thought giving camel jockies billions of dollars worth of hardware was a good idea anyway? They won’t be able to get what they really want anywhere else. They want the most modern stuff available, to protect themselves from Iran and Israel. Neither country is overly impressed anyway.”
“So what?” he argued. “Everything you just mentioned slams our economy, and doesn’t change their behavior. They are going to continue funding these mutts no matter what. It’s cheap and it’s good local politics for them.”
“Very true. Colin, the problem with the Saudis dates back almost a century. King Faisal sold his soul to Satan. He made a deal with the only branch of Islam who would put up with him, the nut job Wahhabis. They supported him for king, putting him in front of all the other Bedouin princes. In turn, he gave them free rein over the mosques and the schools. They have been turning out more nut jobs ever since. The Devil is coming to collect, though. Most of the nut jobs hate the House of Saud as much as they hate the rest of us. Just watch. Wait until they start blowing up things in Saudi Arabia, and not just everywhere else. The Saudis need to clean up their own house,” I explained.
“Either way, you need to speak to Paul O’Neill about this as soon as possible. He is not going to appreciate you raising the price of gas.”
“Very true. Thank you for being here, Mister Secretary.” Colin took his leave and I went back to work.
Much of what we discussed unfolded slowly around us over the next few weeks. Prince bin Sultan was gone by the end of the week, concerned over his ailing health. The CIA contacts we had there indicated that he had promptly resurfaced high in their foreign intelligence office. Also, amid public pronouncements over the concern that America was overreaching in its foreign policy attacks on Islam, oil production was cut in the Kingdom by two million barrels a day, and prices rose by $4 a barrel, rising to just under $26 a barrel.