Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker said he has only been able to view intelligence that’s a week or more old. | J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo Congress Corker rails against Trump administration's intel 'clampdown' on Khashoggi The Tennessee's Republican's comments come as the president tells reporters it appears the journalist is dead.

Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker warned the Trump administration on Thursday that its information “clampdown” on the alleged killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi can’t go on.

The Tennessee Republican said in an interview he sought to view recent U.S. intelligence on Monday and Tuesday regarding Khashoggi’s disappearance and likely murder in Turkey this month but was told by U.S. officials that he could not do so. Corker suggested that the administration’s current opaque position on who may have killed Khashoggi and whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is responsible may be untenable.


“This is going to come to a head in a very short amount of time. This isn’t getting better over time. It seems to me over the next week or so people are going to know more about what happened,” Corker said. “There has been a clampdown on any further intelligence updates to senators … it can’t go on that long, they need to come out and share their views of what happened and share with us.”

Corker, like many senators, said he believes that bin Salman is likely responsible for Khashoggi’s killing, though he concedes he isn’t yet certain. And the Trump administration’s decision to withhold its most recent intelligence from Corker, an occasional Trump critic, underscores the president’s desire to keep close information that could harm the Saudis’ position among members of Congress.

But even absent a smoking gun, some Republicans have been direct about bin Salman’s involvement.

“This guy is a wrecking ball. He had this guy murdered in a consulate in Turkey, and to expect me to ignore it? I feel used and abused,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Fox News this week. Bin Salman “can never be a world leader on the world stage.”

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President Donald Trump told reporters on Thursday that it “certainly looks like” Khashoggi is dead, calling it “very sad.”

The Senate Intelligence Committee is continuing to receive intelligence updates on Khashoggi, an aide said. But Corker said he has been able to view only intelligence that’s a week or more old. On Tuesday he asked to view intelligence in a secure compartment in the Capitol and received an “apologetic” call from an official who informed him that no more information would be given to members of Congress.

A White House spokesman said the “the White House has not directed the Intelligence Community to stop providing intelligence updates to members of Congress."

Corker said he is “disappointed” about the blackout, but he understands why the intelligence pipeline to Congress has stopped. The Trump administration, he said, is trying to regroup in the face of bipartisan outrage toward Saudi Arabia’s possible role in the death of a journalist.

The United States is often aligned with Saudi Arabia on fighting terrorism in the Middle East and sells billions in weapons to the Saudis. Some senators have sought to block those sales, and they indicated in recent interviews that they will try once again after the midterm election. A recent effort failed in the Senate with little GOP support.

But Khashoggi’s apparent death has ramped up pressure on Republicans to do something about Saudi Arabia. The situation amounts to a no-win situation for many members of Congress.

“Some of my colleagues, their attitude seems to be, well, we’re going to cut them off like a dead stump, never talk to them again, punish the hell out of them the rest of their natural lives,” said Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) on Wednesday. “That may make some people feel good for a while, but it’s not realistic if you want to contain the pressure cooker that is the Middle East."

The president and his administration say that Congress is jumping to conclusions too quickly, and Trump has compared bin Salman’s treatment to that of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual assault. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Saudi Arabia this week to discuss Khashoggi’s disappearance and briefed the president on it Thursday.

“They assured me they will conduct a complete, thorough investigation of all of the facts surrounding Mr. Khashoggi and will do so in a timely fashion. And that his report itself will be transparent,” Pompeo said. “I told President Trump this morning that we ought to give them a few more days to complete that.”

Kennedy said he did not believe the Saudis should be conducting the investigation. And if there is evidence that clears the Saudi Arabian leader, members of Congress want to see it soon.

“Everything that we’ve seen thus far is pointed at MBS,” Corker said. “We may well find out if MBS was not involved, though I would be shocked … I don’t think the administration can allow this to swirl around too much longer without taking a definitive position.”

Elana Schor contributed to this report.