Trump and Prince Had ‘Disturbing’ Call After Khashoggi’s Murder, Lawmaker Says

🚨 Lawmaker Demands Release of 'Shocking' Classified Trump-MBS Call After Khashoggi Murder

WASHINGTON, D.C.—A Democratic lawmaker who served on the National Security Council (NSC) has escalated calls for the public release of a classified 2019 phone call transcript between President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), claiming the conversation was "disturbing" and contains details that would "shock" the American people.

Representative Eugene Vindman (D-Va.), who worked as a deputy legal adviser at the NSC during the Trump administration, is leading a pressure campaign to declassify the document, arguing it hints at a potential "quid pro quo" following the brutal 2018 murder of U.S.-resident journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The Classified Allegations

Rep. Vindman stated on the House floor and at a subsequent press conference that during his time reviewing foreign leader calls, the conversation with MBS stood out as one of the two most problematic—the other being the call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that led to Trump’s first impeachment.

While constrained by classification rules, Vindman asserted that the contents of the 2019 call—which took place months after the CIA concluded MBS had likely approved the operation to "capture or kill" the Washington Post columnist—included "the terminology of quid pro quo" and related to "the ensuing benefits that the president reaped."

"The Khashoggi family and the American people deserve to know what was said on that call," Vindman insisted, joined by Khashoggi's widow, Hanan Elatr Khashoggi, who called the murder a "terrorist act" and demanded accountability.

Context: Trump’s Unwavering Defense of the Crown Prince

The push for transparency comes in the wake of President Trump's aggressive public defense of MBS during the Crown Prince's recent high-profile visit to the White House. During their Oval Office meeting, Trump repeatedly dismissed U.S. intelligence conclusions regarding MBS's culpability, stating the Saudi leader "knew nothing about" the killing and controversially remarking that "things happen." He also referred to Khashoggi as "extremely controversial."

The former President’s stance echoes earlier comments, including remarks reported in Bob Woodward's book, Rage, where Trump claimed to have "saved" MBS's "ass" after news of Khashoggi broke.

The controversy highlights ongoing scrutiny over the financial ties between the Trump family business and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which critics allege may have influenced the administration’s response to Khashoggi’s murder.

📊 Trending Data Point: Despite bipartisan congressional outcry, the strategic U.S.-Saudi relationship has consistently prioritized security cooperation, oil stability, and vast defense contracts, with Trump officials frequently touting hundreds of billions of dollars in potential Saudi investment and arms deals as justification for maintaining close ties with Riyadh.

Political Fallout and White House Response

On Thursday, 36 House Democrats joined Rep. Vindman in sending a letter to the administration demanding the full, unredacted transcript be made public.

In response, the White House Communications Director Steven Cheung strongly refuted Vindman’s claims, calling the Congressman a "bitter back-bencher who nobody takes seriously" and a "serial liar" involved in the "hoax" of the Ukraine call.

Despite the administration's categorical denial and the political difficulty of forcing the release of a classified transcript from the minority, lawmakers and Khashoggi’s family are determined to press the issue, arguing the opaque nature of the high-level exchange undermines U.S. commitments to human rights and the rule of law. The demand for the transcript has drawn parallels to the previous impeachment inquiry, reinforcing the narrative that the President's private diplomacy with foreign leaders is a critical area for congressional oversight.

---