James Downie: Mike Pompeo knows even less about Jamal Khashoggi than he does about being a diplomat.
Pompeo's most detailed excuse relies on recasting Khashoggi's entire career."Khashoggi was a journalist to the extent that I and many other public figures are journalists," Pompeo argues."We sometimes get our writing published, but we also do other things. The media made Khashoggi out to be a Saudi Arabian Bob Woodward who was martyred for bravely criticizing the Saudi royal family through his opinion articles in the Washington Post.
Pompeo's mini-biography is factually incorrect. At the time of his death, Khashoggi had worked as an editor and a reporter at various Arab and English-language publications for. He became an adviser to members of the royal family through his media work, not the other way around. As for the palace struggle and Khashoggi's motivations, it's true that the Saudi royals that Khashoggi advised, such as the billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal,. And it's true that had Mohammed not become crown prince and extended his crackdown on dissent, Khashoggi most likely would have stayed in Saudi Arabia and in the royal orbit. So yes, Pompeo is correct: If things were different, then they wouldn't be the same.
There's a broader lesson, though, to remember about dissidents, leakers and whistleblowers: Ideals are far less complicated than people. Whether it's Mark Felt or Linda Tripp or Edward Snowden, it can be easy to dismiss scandals we don't like based on the source's background or motivations. But we must be careful not to let personal complications blind us to the truths those sources have revealed. Otherwise, we risk sounding as ignorant and as heartless as Mike Pompeo.
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