{"id":161051,"date":"2020-05-18T12:00:44","date_gmt":"2020-05-18T11:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=161051"},"modified":"2020-05-18T09:26:52","modified_gmt":"2020-05-18T08:26:52","slug":"why-bombs-made-in-america-have-been-killing-civilians-in-yemen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2020\/05\/why-bombs-made-in-america-have-been-killing-civilians-in-yemen\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Bombs Made in America Have Been Killing Civilians in Yemen"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote>\n<p class=\"css-1tg9etv e1wiw3jv0\"><em>President Trump sees arms deals as jobs generators for firms like Raytheon, which has made billions in sales to the Saudi coalition. The Obama administration initially backed the Saudis too, but later regretted it as thousands died.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div>\n<div id=\"attachment_161052\" style=\"width: 610px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-usa-pentagon-saudi-war.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-161052\" class=\"wp-image-161052\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-usa-pentagon-saudi-war.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"375\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-usa-pentagon-saudi-war.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-usa-pentagon-saudi-war-300x188.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-usa-pentagon-saudi-war-768x480.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-161052\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Global Risk Insights<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\"><time class=\"eyb051o0 css-ewzcb4 e16638kd0\" datetime=\"2020-05-16T05:00:24-04:00\"><em>16 May 2020<\/em> &#8211; <\/time>Year after year, the bombs fell \u2014 on wedding tents, funeral halls, fishing boats and a school bus, killing thousands of civilians and helping turn Yemen into the world\u2019s worst humanitarian crisis.<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Weapons supplied by American companies, approved by American officials, allowed Saudi Arabia to pursue the reckless campaign. But in June 2017, an influential Republican senator decided to cut them off, by withholding approval for new sales. It was a moment that might have stopped the slaughter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Not under President Trump.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">With billions at stake, one of the president\u2019s favored aides, the combative trade adviser Peter Navarro, made it his mission to reverse the senator. Mr. Navarro, after consulting with American arms makers, wrote a memo to Jared Kushner and other top White House officials calling for an intervention, possibly by Mr. Trump himself. He titled it \u201cTrump Mideast arms sales deal in extreme jeopardy, job losses imminent.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Within weeks, the Saudis were once again free to buy American weapons.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The intervention, which has not been previously reported, underscores a fundamental change in American foreign policy under Mr. Trump that often elevates economic considerations over other ones. Where foreign arms sales in the past were mostly offered and withheld to achieve diplomatic goals, the Trump administration pursues them mainly for the profits they generate and the jobs they create, with little regard for how the weapons are used.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<figure class=\"css-1ef8w8q e1g7ppur0\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"media\">\n<div class=\"css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0\">\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><picture class=\"css-1j5kxti\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=600\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 3dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 288dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1200\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 2dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 192dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1800\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 1dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 96dpi)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 80vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2\/merlin_171237012_e3321656-0b02-45d2-a44e-8dcd3c42d147-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"President Trump has encharged his trade adviser Peter Navarro with growing American manufacturing, particularly in the arms industry.\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"css-18crmh6 ewdxa0s0\"><strong><span class=\"css-16f3y1r e13ogyst0\" aria-hidden=\"true\">President Trump has encharged his trade adviser Peter Navarro with growing American manufacturing, particularly in the arms industry.<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"css-cnj6d5 e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span>Doug Mills\/The New York Times<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump has tapped Mr. Navarro, a California economist best known for polemics against China, to be a conduit between the Oval Office and defense firms. His administration <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/04\/19\/us\/politics\/trump-drones-sales.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" >has also rewritten the rules<\/a> for arms exports, speeding weapon sales to foreign militaries. The State Department, responsible for licensing arms deals, now is charged with more aggressively promoting them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cThis White House has been more open to defense industry executives than any other in living memory,\u201d said Loren B. Thompson, a longtime analyst who consults for major arms manufacturers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">No foreign entanglement has revealed the trade-offs of this policy more than the war in Yemen. There, Mr. Trump\u2019s embrace of arms sales has helped prolong a conflict that has killed more than 100,000 people in the Arab world\u2019s poorest nation, further destabilizing an already volatile region, according to a review of thousands of pages of records and interviews with more than 50 people with knowledge of the policy or who participated in the decision-making.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">American arms makers who sell to the Saudis say they are accountable to shareholders and are doing nothing wrong. And because weapon sales to foreign militaries must be approved by the State Department, the companies say they don\u2019t make policy, only follow it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">But as the situation in Yemen worsened, at least one firm, Raytheon Company, did more than wait for decisions by American officials. It went to great lengths to influence them, even after members of Congress tried to upend sales to Saudi Arabia on humanitarian grounds.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Raytheon, a major supplier of weapons to the Saudis, including some implicated by human rights groups in the deaths of Yemeni civilians, has long viewed the kingdom as one of its most important foreign customers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">After the Yemen war began in 2015 and the Obama administration made a hasty decision to back the Saudis, Raytheon booked more than $3 billion in new bomb sales, according to an analysis of available U.S. government records.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Intent on pushing the deals through, Raytheon followed the industry playbook: It took advantage of federal loopholes by sending former State Department officials, who were not required to be registered as lobbyists, to press their former colleagues to approve the sales.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">And though the company was already embedded in Washington \u2014 its chief lobbyist, Mark Esper, would become Army secretary and then defense secretary under Mr. Trump \u2014 Raytheon executives sought even closer ties.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">They assiduously courted Mr. Navarro, who intervened with White House officials on Raytheon\u2019s behalf and successfully pressured the State Department, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/10\/17\/magazine\/rex-tillerson-and-the-unraveling-of-the-state-department.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" >diminished under Mr. Trump<\/a>, to process the most contentious deals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">They also enlisted the help of David J. Urban, a lobbyist whose close ties to Mr. Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo go back to the 1980s, when all three men were at West Point.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">As the nation turned against the war, a range of American officials \u2014 Democratic and Republican \u2014 tried three times to halt the killing by blocking arms sales to the Saudis. Their efforts were undone by the White House, largely at the urging of Raytheon.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Approached a half-dozen times, Raytheon representatives declined to speak with reporters about foreign sales. \u201cWe believe further dialogue regarding foreign military sales is best directed to officials in the U.S. government,\u201d Corinne Kovalsky, then a company spokeswoman, said in December.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Lawmakers from both parties have condemned the continued arms sales in the Yemen war, expressing both humanitarian and security concerns: Some of the weapons have wound up in the hands of militant Islamic groups in the country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cWe don\u2019t know how these weapons are really being used or whether they may be turned against U.S. troops in the future,\u201d said Senator Mike Lee, Republican of Utah, who has publicly criticized the administration\u2019s approach to the conflict. \u201cThis war was never authorized by Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Others say the president\u2019s arms sale policies diminish the United States.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cPeople look to us. We\u2019re the only country in the world that is ever capable of using this immense power that we have in a way that\u2019s more than just about our naked self-interest,\u201d said Representative Tom Malinowski, a New Jersey Democrat who was born in Communist Poland and led the State Department\u2019s human rights bureau under President Barack Obama.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cPresident Trump has proudly said that we should continue to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia because they pay us a lot of money,\u201d Mr. Malinowski said. \u201cHe seems to see foreign policy in the way he viewed the real estate business \u2014 every country is like a company and our job is to make money.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The Trump administration has defended arms sales to Saudi Arabia as being vital to job growth and the American economy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cWe\u2019ve created an incredible economy,\u201d Mr. Trump told Fox Business in October 2018, after the killing of the journalist and American resident Jamal Khashoggi sparked calls to stop selling to the Saudis. \u201cI want Boeing and I want Lockheed and I want Raytheon to take those orders and to hire lots of people to make that incredible equipment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-161056\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"550\" height=\"367\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/raytheon-2048x1366.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<figure class=\"css-1ef8w8q e1g7ppur0\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"media\">\n<div class=\"css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0\">\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><picture class=\"css-1j5kxti\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/17\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-3-print\/merlin_156803004_92f86811-a9d9-480d-bdbd-3c7def1976fc-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=600\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 3dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 288dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/17\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-3-print\/merlin_156803004_92f86811-a9d9-480d-bdbd-3c7def1976fc-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1200\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 2dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 192dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/17\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-3-print\/merlin_156803004_92f86811-a9d9-480d-bdbd-3c7def1976fc-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1800\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 1dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 96dpi)\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"css-18crmh6 ewdxa0s0\"><strong><span class=\"css-16f3y1r e13ogyst0\" aria-hidden=\"true\">Raytheon hired former U.S. officials to press for approval of arms deals with Saudi Arabia, one of its most important clients.<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"css-cnj6d5 e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span>Pascal Rossignol\/Reuters<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Records show that foreign military sales, facilitated by the U.S. government, rose sharply after Mr. Trump became president. They averaged about $51 billion a year during Mr. Trump\u2019s first three years, compared with $36 billion a year during the final term of Mr. Obama, who also oversaw a big increase.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Arms industry groups say defense jobs rose more than 3.5 percent to about 880,000 during Mr. Trump\u2019s first two years, though the numbers, the most recent available, do not specify how many were in manufacturing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The White House referred requests for comment to the National Security Council, where a spokesman said that \u201cIran and its Houthi proxies\u201d had targeted Saudi Arabia and had endangered Americans. \u201cWe remain committed to supporting Saudi Arabia\u2019s right to defend against those threats, while urging that all appropriate measures are taken to prevent civilian casualties,\u201d said the spokesman, John Ullyot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">A State Department spokeswoman said that the administration had made clear that \u201ceconomic security is national security,\u201d and that the administration was \u201cstrengthening our advocacy for defense sales that are in our national interest.\u201d She disputed the suggestion that human rights had taken a back seat to other considerations, insisting the new approach \u201cactually increases focus on human rights\u201d through military training and other programs with allies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Anthony Wier, a former State Department official under Mr. Obama, said past administrations of both parties had sought to balance the economic benefits of arms sales with the realities on the ground.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cThis is an important export industry with a lot of factory jobs, with a lot of states,\u201d Mr. Wier said. \u201cBut there\u2019s also a crater in Yemen where a school bus used to sit, and there\u2019s a stack of children dead.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 id=\"link-1ddda10f\" class=\"css-k667mn eoo0vm40\">Getting the President\u2019s Ear<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump won the presidency partly on promises to resuscitate American manufacturing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cWe\u2019re going to bring back the jobs that have been stolen from you,\u201d he told a packed arena in Raleigh, N.C., on Nov. 7, 2016, the day before the election. \u201cWe\u2019re going to bring back the miners and the factory workers and the steelworkers. We\u2019re going to put them back to work.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">But as the initial glow of victory faded, reality set in. Mr. Trump\u2019s aides realized there were not many ways the executive branch, on its own, could affect manufacturing and trade, three former Trump administration officials said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">One campaign adviser, Mr. Navarro, thought he had a solution. A Harvard-educated economist, Mr. Navarro had published papers on management strategy and a book of investment advice, \u201cIf It\u2019s Raining in Brazil, Buy Starbucks.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">He had not specialized in the American arms industry. Even so, he made the case to members of Mr. Trump\u2019s transition team, including Stephen K. Bannon, then one of Mr. Trump\u2019s most trusted advisers, that invoking national security and promoting the defense industry were ways to impose tariffs, create manufacturing jobs and shrink the trade deficit. Mr. Bannon embraced the pitch, according to a person with knowledge of the conversations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">In December 2016, the president-elect named Mr. Navarro head of the newly created National Trade Council, an ill-defined position that seemed in conflict with other, more established roles in the White House. And though the organization apparently existed only on paper, the title afforded him access to Cabinet-level meetings, where he would forcefully argue his points as the principals looked on.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump gave him responsibility for stoking American defense manufacturing by growing foreign arms sales, among other things. Defense companies took notice.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">After Mr. Trump\u2019s inauguration, representatives of Raytheon and other firms streamed in to see Mr. Navarro, finding him ready to listen. Mr. Navarro\u2019s hard-line stance toward China was well known, and they played it to their advantage, said Mr. Thompson, the analyst and consultant, who soon arranged a lunch meeting between Mr. Navarro and industry leaders, including Thomas A. Kennedy, then Raytheon\u2019s chief executive and now its executive chairman.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The defense firms presented themselves as the rare high-tech industry that had not recently lost ground to China, Mr. Thompson said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">During the first years of Mr. Trump\u2019s presidency, as aides undermined one another and turned over on a regular basis, Mr. Navarro\u2019s claim to an essential mission, and his new ties to arms executives, insulated him from the turbulence, according to the former administration officials.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">In Mr. Navarro, they said, the companies had an advocate who was not shy about confronting senior leaders over matters he deemed important. And while the officials often bristled at his presumption, and worked to marginalize him, Mr. Navarro nevertheless retained influence with Mr. Kushner and Mr. Trump.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump relished having around him an Ivy League economist who agreed with his pronouncements on trade. The president, in turn, listened when Mr. Navarro repeatedly raised arms sales to Saudi Arabia and other countries, sometimes repeating talking points used by Raytheon and other arms makers, the former administration officials said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">In an interview, Mr. Navarro said that his focus has been on carrying out Mr. Trump\u2019s economic policies, not on corporate cheerleading.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cI don\u2019t advocate for companies,\u201d Mr. Navarro said. \u201cI advocate for the president and for American workers and for our men and women in uniform. That\u2019s it. Period. Full stop.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump\u2019s aggressive arms sale policies were met with alarm by some in the State Department, in part because the administration did not seem concerned with human rights issues, according to several current and former State Department officials, who like others interviewed for this article were not authorized to speak publicly. Though past administrations had sometimes shown a willingness to achieve narrow goals by arming rough regimes, Mr. Trump seemed to view weapon sales as ends in themselves.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Worse, they said, were signs of how little the administration grasped the basics of arms deals, which can have profound foreign policy and national security consequences.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">One episode in spring 2017 underscored those concerns. When Mr. Kushner and others wanted to line up military sales ahead of a visit by Mr. Trump to Saudi Arabia, they convened meetings at the White House but did not invite the State Department \u2014 the only agency by law that can authorize foreign deals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Arms sale specialists in the State Department learned about the gathering only after a senior Pentagon official called and urged them to hurry over, current and former officials said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 id=\"link-7403edaa\" class=\"css-k667mn eoo0vm40\">A $5 Billion Turnaround<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">As war broke out five years ago in Yemen, Raytheon was a company on the rebound.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Based in Waltham, Mass., it had risen over the years to become the third-largest defense firm in the United States, bolstered by sales of its best-known system, the Patriot missile. But Raytheon had been battered by flagging profits and federal budget cuts, and Mr. Kennedy, the chief executive, was determined to turn things around, starting with international sales.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Raytheon earned more of its revenue from sales to foreign governments than Lockheed Martin and other American defense giants, and few foreign customers were more important than Saudi Arabia. Its ties with the Saudis dated to the 1960s, when the company became one of the first American defense firms to build a permanent base in the kingdom.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Since then, generations of Raytheon executives had sought to ingratiate the company with the Saudis, hiring members of the royal family as consultants, building schools and investing in projects favored by the royal court.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The close relationship was evident two days after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, when three Saudi college students began their journey out of the country from Raytheon\u2019s private terminal in Tampa, Fla., according to a report by the 9\/11 Commission. (None of the men, including one who was a member of the Saudi royal family, was tied to the attacks, though Saudi nationals were among the hijackers.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The longstanding ties helped Mr. Kennedy turn around the company. Since the Yemen war began, Raytheon has booked at least a dozen major sales to the kingdom and its partners worth more than $5 billion, U.S. government records show, helping lift the firm\u2019s fortunes and position it <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/06\/09\/business\/dealbook\/united-technologies-raytheon-deal.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" >to pursue a merger<\/a> with another large defense company, United Technologies, that was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prnewswire.com\/news-releases\/united-technologies-and-raytheon-complete-merger-of-equals-transaction-301034894.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">completed in April<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Some of the deals, for defensive items, sailed through the government approval process. But sales of offensive weapons, including more than 120,000 precision <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/06\/07\/us\/saudi-arabia-arms-sales-raytheon.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" >bombs and bomb parts<\/a> that the Saudis were using in Yemen, faced major hurdles. Those deals were among the most lucrative ones, worth more than $3 billion, the government records show.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div id=\"attachment_161057\" style=\"width: 710px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-war.jpg\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-161057\" class=\"wp-image-161057\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-war.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"394\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-war.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-war-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/yemen-war-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-161057\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yemen war: More than 100 dead in Saudi-led strike, says Red Cross. BBC.com<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<figure class=\"css-i9mk6q e1g7ppur0\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"media\">\n<div class=\"css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0\">\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><picture class=\"css-1j5kxti\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-6\/16yemenarms-6-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=600\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 3dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 288dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-6\/16yemenarms-6-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1200\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 2dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 192dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-6\/16yemenarms-6-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1800\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 1dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 96dpi)\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"css-5qsc2a ewdxa0s0\"><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Trouble for the company started on Oct. 8, 2016, when Saudi coalition planes repeatedly targeted a funeral hall in Sana, the Yemeni capital, where some 1,500 men, women and children had gathered to mourn the father of a government official.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The first bomb shattered the building, killing some instantly and sending others on a scramble to escape the smoldering rubble. A second landed as people poured in to help the survivors. A third fell as the newly injured and dying were clambering amid the splintered wood and broken concrete.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cPeople were on fire, and some people were burned alive,\u201d one survivor, 42-year-old Hassan Jubran, <a href=\"https:\/\/mwatana.org\/en\/day-of-judgment\/\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told human rights workers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cThere were also many children,\u201d he said. \u201cThere were three children whose bodies were completely torn apart and strewn all over the place.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">At least 140 people died and another 500 were wounded in the bombing, which the Saudis later said was a mistake. Soon after the attack, human rights workers discovered amid the wreckage a bomb shard bearing the identification number of an American company: Raytheon.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">It was one of at least 12 attacks on civilians that human rights groups would tie to the company\u2019s ordnance during the first two years of the war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Asked in 2017 whether dead and wounded civilians gave him pause, John D. Harris II, then Raytheon\u2019s vice president of business development, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2017\/11\/13\/raytheon-seeing-growth-in-missile-defense-systems-because-of-rising-threat-dynamics.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told CNBC that they did not<\/a>, \u201cbecause we do the hard work of making sure that the countries that employ our systems have the very best training and the ability to use the system in an appropriate manner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>**********************<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"16yemengraphic\" class=\"interactive-content interactive-size-scoop css-m2zfm8\" data-id=\"100000007137617\">\n<header id=\"interactive-header\" class=\"css-cl76n0 interactive-header\">\n<h2 id=\"interactive-headline\" class=\"css-1su19vv interactive-headline\">Finding U.S. Fingerprints in the Bomb Sites of Yemen<\/h2>\n<p id=\"interactive-leadin\" class=\"css-1vs7yia interactive-leadin\" data-testid=\"leadin\">Based in Sana, researchers at Mwatana for Human Rights are documenting deadly attacks on civilians and tracing weapons back to U.S. defense firms, including Raytheon.<\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"css-17ih8de interactive-body\" data-sourceid=\"100000007137617\">\n<div class=\"g-story g-freebird g-max-limit \" data-preview-slug=\"yemen\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-grid g-col-count-2\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-grid-item-container g-align-center\">\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-main-image\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-image main g-asset-width-full\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-asset_inner\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-image-element g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/pickup-truck-03-highlighted-720.jpg\" width=\"460\" height=\"273.51351351351354\" data-ratio=\"0.5945945945945946\" data-widths=\"[460,720]\" data-pattern=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/pickup-truck-03-highlighted-{{size}}.jpg\" data-pattern-retina=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/pickup-truck-03-highlighted-{{size}}_x2.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-text\">\n<div class=\"g-grid__header\">\n<h3 class=\"g-grid__title\"><strong>Al-Matmah District, Jawf Province Date Sept. 20, 2016 Deaths 15<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"g-body \">After a coalition bomb ripped through a truck carrying 15 women and children outside Sana, a Mwatana researcher discovered a shard with Raytheon\u2019s identification number. The resulting report linked the company to the attack and raised doubts about a Saudi internal investigation that said the strike had targeted Houthi rebel commanders. \u201cWe document, and we publish,\u201d said Mwatana&#8217;s co-founder, Radhya Almutawakel. \u201cThis is the work we do.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-image\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-image g-asset-width-full\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-asset_inner\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-image-element g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/pickup-truck-01-460.jpg\" width=\"460\" height=\"228.427734375\" data-ratio=\"0.49658203125\" data-widths=\"[460,720]\" data-pattern=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/pickup-truck-01-{{size}}.jpg\" data-pattern-retina=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/pickup-truck-01-{{size}}_x2.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-source \" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"g-caption\">Top: Part of a Raytheon-made GBU-12 bomb that struck a vehicle packed with women and children. <\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<div class=\"g-source \" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"g-caption\">Above: Remnants of the civilian truck after the airstrike.<\/span><span class=\"g-credit\">Mwatana for Human Rights<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-asset g-grid g-col-count-2\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-grid-item-container g-align-center\">\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-main-image\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-image main left g-asset-width-full\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-asset_inner\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-image-element g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/apartment-building-03-highlighted-720.jpg\" width=\"460\" height=\"273.51351351351354\" data-ratio=\"0.5945945945945946\" data-widths=\"[460,720]\" data-pattern=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/apartment-building-03-highlighted-{{size}}.jpg\" data-pattern-retina=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/apartment-building-03-highlighted-{{size}}_x2.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-image\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-image g-asset-width-full\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-asset_inner\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-image-element g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/apartment-building-02-460.jpg\" width=\"460\" height=\"578.843721770551\" data-ratio=\"1.2583559168925023\" data-widths=\"[460,720]\" data-pattern=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/apartment-building-02-{{size}}.jpg\" data-pattern-retina=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/apartment-building-02-{{size}}_x2.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-source \" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"g-caption\">Top: A piece from another Raytheon-made GBU-12 bomb, which killed members of the Al-Juma\u2019i family. <\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<div class=\"g-source \" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"g-caption\">Above: A bloodied shirt believed to have belonged to a 3- or 4-year-old child killed in the attack.<\/span><span class=\"g-credit\">Mwatana for Human Rights<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-text\">\n<div class=\"g-grid__header\">\n<h3 class=\"g-grid__title\"><strong>Al-Dhihar District, Ibb Province Date Sept. 24, 2016 Deaths 6<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"g-body \">Mwatana researchers have chronicled hundreds of strikes, gathering stories of victims and survivors. \u201cHer legs were shredded, and her body was burnt,\u201d one witness said of an 11-year-old girl after a strike on an apartment building. \u201cI gathered her in a blanket. Then I went to look for the rest of the family.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-asset g-grid g-col-count-2\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-grid-item-container g-align-center\">\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-main-image\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-image main g-asset-width-full\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-asset_inner\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-image-element g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/residential-neighborhood-02-highlighted-720.jpg\" width=\"460\" height=\"272.89189189189193\" data-ratio=\"0.5932432432432433\" data-widths=\"[460,720]\" data-pattern=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/residential-neighborhood-02-highlighted-{{size}}.jpg\" data-pattern-retina=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/residential-neighborhood-02-highlighted-{{size}}_x2.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-text\">\n<div class=\"g-grid__header\">\n<h3 class=\"g-grid__title\"><strong>Dar Saad District, Aden Province Date April 30, 2015 Deaths 1<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"g-body \">Mwatana\u2019s work has helped shape discussions in the United Nations Security Council as well as in Congress, where Ms. Almutawakel testified last year. \u201cSome of these attacks are likely war crimes,\u201d she told the Foreign Affairs Committee at the U.S. House of Representatives. \u201cMany of them used American-made bombs and munitions. Every single one of these attacks destroyed innocent lives.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-grid-item is-image\">\n<div class=\"g-asset g-image g-asset-width-full\">\n<div role=\"img\">\n<div class=\"g-asset_inner\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"g-image-element g-freebird-lazy ll-init ll-loadstarted ll-loaded aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/residential-neighborhood-01-460.jpg\" width=\"460\" height=\"345.1022222222222\" data-ratio=\"0.7502222222222222\" data-widths=\"[460,720]\" data-pattern=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/residential-neighborhood-01-{{size}}.jpg\" data-pattern-retina=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/newsgraphics\/2020\/05\/13\/yemen\/assets\/images\/residential-neighborhood-01-{{size}}_x2.jpg\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"g-source \" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"g-caption\">Top: A shard from a Raytheon-made GBU-12 that killed a woman named Haifa Zawqari and injured others. <\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<div class=\"g-source \" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"g-caption\">Above: The residential neighborhood after the strike.<\/span><span class=\"g-credit\">Mwatana for Human Rights<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">*******************<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The strike in Sana unsettled the Obama administration, which had agreed to support the Saudis but was becoming increasingly concerned about the war. \u201cThat demanded a response,\u201d said Andrew Miller, a Middle East expert on Mr. Obama\u2019s National Security Council. \u201cBy that time it was clear that the war had gone in a direction we had not anticipated.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">In December, the administration halted delivery of bomb parts that had been sold but not yet shipped, a decision that angered the Saudis and Raytheon. Mr. Kennedy <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/12\/13\/us\/politics\/saudi-arabia-arms-sale-yemen-war.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" >placed a personal call<\/a> to Mr. Obama\u2019s national security adviser, Susan Rice. But the administration would not budge.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The firm would have to wait until Mr. Obama left office \u2014 and then try to forge ties with the Trump administration as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The company\u2019s executives got to work.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"link-54fb5783\" class=\"css-k667mn eoo0vm40\">\u2018Raytheon, Congratulations\u2019<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Just seven months into the new administration, Mr. Kennedy was standing by Mr. Trump\u2019s side in the White House, watching as the president dashed his signature across a presidential memorandum on trade with China.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">When he was finished, Mr. Trump held up the pen. \u201cWhere\u2019s Raytheon?\u201d he asked. Mr. Kennedy leaned in to accept the gift.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cRaytheon,\u201d Mr. Trump said, \u201ccongratulations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">It was August 2017, and the Trump administration was in the grip of a crisis. Business leaders were abandoning the president over his comments about racial violence in Charlottesville, Va., just when he needed executives to show support for a new crackdown on China.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Kennedy was there to help Mr. Trump, even though his company had virtually no relationship with China. He did not get there by accident.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">During the early months of the new presidency, Raytheon executives tried to get close to the administration by arranging for Mr. Kennedy to meet with Mr. Trump on a handful of occasions, including during the president\u2019s trip to Saudi Arabia that May, former employees said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Soon after the trip, the Trump administration waved through the delivery of bomb parts to the Saudis that Mr. Obama had delayed. But the company wanted more.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">So it turned to Mr. Navarro, whose office helped Raytheon orchestrate Mr. Kennedy\u2019s appearance at the August signing ceremony, according to a person with direct knowledge of the arrangement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">It was a face-saving moment for the president, and a turning point in the company\u2019s relationship with the White House. In the months that followed, Mr. Navarro pushed hard for Raytheon and its deals with Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">His first order of business was trying to reverse a new obstacle to the company\u2019s deals \u2014 <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/06\/26\/world\/middleeast\/arms-sales-persian-gulf-bob-corker-qatar.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" >a decision in June by Senator Bob Corker<\/a>, Republican of Tennessee, to block arm sales from Raytheon and other companies to Persian Gulf nations over a matter unrelated to the Yemen war. As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Mr. Corker had the authority to place a hold on the deals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The move put Raytheon in a difficult position. The company was already in contract to sell the Saudis and Emiratis more bombs and bomb parts for nearly $2 billion. But unlike the earlier deal that Mr. Obama had halted, these agreements exposed Raytheon to onerous penalties if the company did not deliver.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">At first, Mr. Navarro directed his attention at Mr. Corker, complaining that the senator was interfering with the president\u2019s agenda, one former White House official said. \u201cIt was clear that this for him was priority No. 1,\u201d the official said of overturning the hold.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">By that winter, Mr. Navarro had shifted his focus to Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, whose department, Mr. Navarro learned, had still not forwarded to Congress its approval for the Raytheon bomb deals \u2014 a crucial step for them to be finalized.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">To break the logjam, Mr. Navarro sent the memo in January 2018 to top White House officials, urging them to bring Mr. Tillerson in line. Recipients included Mr. Kushner, who, like Mr. Trump, his father-in-law, enjoyed a close relationship with the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and would have been sensitive to Saudi complaints about stalled weapon deals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The memo was described by three current and former government officials; one read portions of it to a New York Times reporter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">It called for White House officials to \u201cmeet with Tillerson and direct him to immediately\u201d send the pending deals to Congress for approval. Then, it continued, the White House should contact Mr. Corker to make sure he cleared the sales right away.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cUnless the White House promptly intervenes, one particular company, Raytheon, will begin laying off thousands of workers,\u201d Mr. Navarro wrote, attributing the information to \u201cindustry sources.\u201d He added: \u201cPOTUS may have to get involved,\u201d a reference to Mr. Trump.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Navarro, in the interview, said he involved himself not because any company\u2019s deals were at stake but because Mr. Tillerson was running a foreign policy that was not in line with Mr. Trump\u2019s.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cWhen the president of the United States found out that his signature arms sales packages weren\u2019t moving, he said, \u2018Fix this.\u2019 That\u2019s what I do at the White House,\u201d Mr. Navarro said. \u201cI fix things.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<figure class=\"css-1ef8w8q e1g7ppur0\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"media\">\n<div class=\"css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0\">\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><picture class=\"css-1j5kxti\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=600\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 3dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 288dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1200\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 2dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 192dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1800\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 1dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 96dpi)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 80vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/politics\/16yemenarms-tillerson\/merlin_138823887_3dba41d4-60df-4373-8220-b2628563df87-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"Former Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, center, was accused by Mr. Navarro of working to hold up Saudi weapon sales.\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"css-18crmh6 ewdxa0s0\"><strong><span class=\"css-16f3y1r e13ogyst0\" aria-hidden=\"true\">Former Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, center, was accused by Mr. Navarro of working to hold up Saudi weapon sales.<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"css-cnj6d5 e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span>Tom Brenner\/The New York Times<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Within a week of the memo, Mr. Tillerson met with Mr. Corker. About three weeks later, <a href=\"https:\/\/partner-mco-archive.s3.amazonaws.com\/client_files\/1518620130.pdf\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the senator lifted the prohibition.<\/a> Mr. Corker declined to comment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Navarro\u2019s memo landed as Mr. Tillerson\u2019s relationship with the White House was deteriorating, and the delay in moving the Saudi sales deepened the rift at a critical moment, former officials said. Morale within the department was also flagging, and several senior leadership posts remained unfilled.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Tina Kaidanow, who oversaw the State Department\u2019s arms sale approval bureau at the time, recalled cautioning Mr. Tillerson in a meeting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cI told him that continuing to hold those sales would almost certainly occasion an unhappy response from a White House focused on increasing arms sales to Saudi Arabia,\u201d Ms. Kaidanow said in an interview.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Trump fired Mr. Tillerson that March.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"link-3cf4f217\" class=\"css-k667mn eoo0vm40\">A Third Intervention Fails<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Raytheon may have had a powerful White House ally who had influence over a Republican senator and an unpopular cabinet member. But the company\u2019s sway did not extend to Democrats on Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Weeks after Mr. Navarro helped end Mr. Corker\u2019s hold, another leading senator blocked the Raytheon deals. Senator Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, made the third attempt to stop the arms feeding the Yemen war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">By then the fighting had entered its third year. The death toll had soared past 50,000, including 9,000 civilians, raising concerns among Mr. Menendez and other lawmakers that the Saudis were not doing enough to avoid killing noncombatants. Mr. Kennedy of Raytheon visited Mr. Menendez in the Capitol in May 2018, pleading his company\u2019s case in an ornate room usually reserved for welcoming foreign dignitaries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The senator, who as ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee had authority to block the sales, was unswayed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cI told him I don\u2019t have an ideological problem; I have supported other arms sales. But you cannot, as a company, be promoting the arm sales to a country that is using it in violation of international norms,\u201d Mr. Menendez said in an interview. \u201cI understand the motivation for profit, but I don\u2019t understand the motivation for profit in the face of human rights violations and civilian casualties.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">At the same time, the company\u2019s Washington office deployed former State Department officials to press their former colleagues in the administration. Among them was Tom Kelly, the erstwhile American ambassador to Djibouti, a small country across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">It was a strategy common among defense contractors, who routinely bring on former government officials for their expertise and deep connections, said Mandy Smithberger, a defense analyst at the Project on Government Oversight, a watchdog group. A loophole does not require them to register as lobbyists.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cThese people are being hired for who they know,\u201d Ms. Smithberger said, calling the practice \u201ca form of legalized corruption.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Kelly did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Meanwhile, Mr. Navarro continued his push for Raytheon sales.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">He had already overseen a rewrite of the government\u2019s conventional arms transfer policy \u2014 its rules for selling arms to foreign militaries \u2014 to make it easier for companies like Raytheon to win government approval. The new rules, which marked the first time \u201ceconomic security\u201d was listed as a guiding principle, called for the State Department to expand its support of American defense firms abroad while paring back regulations that slowed the transfer process.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Navarro then began holding biweekly progress meetings about pending deals, including Raytheon\u2019s, with officials from the National Security Council and the State Department.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">During the meetings, he put intense pressure on officials to move the deals forward, according to two people present at some of the gatherings, asking over and over again: \u201cWhy aren\u2019t we further along?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Some State Department officials worried that a White House trade adviser with no foreign policy role was expediting arms sales with profound diplomatic consequences, the people present said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Navarro, in his interview, said the meetings were necessary to \u201cbring to heel a bunch of career bureaucrats\u201d who were not carrying out the president\u2019s wishes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cWe dramatically accelerated the pace of approvals on the Hill and at State to the advantage of American workers and the security of our allies and partners,\u201d Mr. Navarro said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">That fall, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/national-security\/cia-concludes-saudi-crown-prince-ordered-jamal-khashoggis-assassination\/2018\/11\/16\/98c89fe6-e9b2-11e8-a939-9469f1166f9d_story.html\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">C.I.A. implicated Prince Mohammed<\/a> in the killing of Mr. Khashoggi, the American resident and Washington Post contributor, further damaging the kingdom\u2019s standing with Congress. But pressure from Mr. Navarro and industry officials on the State Department kept building until spring last year, when Mr. Pompeo, who had replaced Mr. Tillerson as secretary of state after helming the C.I.A., decided it was time to move the sales through.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">That April, Mr. Pompeo met with other top administration officials and discussed declaring an emergency to release the arms \u2014 something that had occurred only rarely in the past. Soon after, they decided to fast-track the sales by citing the need to counter Iran, which was supporting Yemen\u2019s Houthi rebels, according to a person with knowledge of the meetings. A State Department spokeswoman declined to comment on specific deliberations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Declaring an emergency would bypass Congress and risk alienating allies on Capitol Hill. Mr. Pompeo and the others pursued it anyway.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Only a handful of people within the Pentagon and State Department knew of the plan. They did not include anyone in the State Department\u2019s human rights bureau, which had consulted on weapon sales in previous administrations, the person said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Pompeo took the final step on May 24, 2019, the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, delivering Congress an emergency declaration tailored to free up more than 20 stalled deals, including Raytheon\u2019s bomb sales, by citing Iranian support for the rebels in Yemen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Within weeks, those arms were flowing again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">By the end of the year, the civilian death toll in Yemen had topped 12,000.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<h2 id=\"link-63b96ac3\" class=\"css-k667mn eoo0vm40\">A Trap \u2018Like Flypaper\u2019<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">As Mr. Trump gears up for re-election, the administration has framed arms sales to the Saudis as a win, signaling no regrets. \u201cThe relationship has been very good, and they buy hundreds of billions of dollars\u2019 worth of merchandise from us,\u201d Mr. Trump told reporters before boarding Marine One in October. \u201cIt\u2019s millions of jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<figure class=\"css-1ef8w8q e1g7ppur0\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"media\">\n<div class=\"css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0\">\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><picture class=\"css-1j5kxti\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=600\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 3dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 288dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1200\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 2dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 192dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1800\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 1dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 96dpi)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 80vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-2020\/16yemenarms-2020-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1417w\" alt=\"An attack in Jawf Province this\u00a0 February killed 32 civilians, mostly women and children. A bomb part tied to Raytheon was found in the rubble.\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"css-18crmh6 ewdxa0s0\"><strong><span class=\"css-16f3y1r e13ogyst0\" aria-hidden=\"true\">An attack in Jawf Province this\u00a0 February killed 32 civilians, mostly women and children. A bomb part tied to Raytheon was found in the rubble.<br \/>\n<\/span><span class=\"css-cnj6d5 e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span>Mwatana for Human Rights<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">But for those who first pledged American support to the Saudis, the past five years have been replete with second-guessing and misgivings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Officials in the Obama White House, recalling how the Saudis had sought American backing, know it as the \u201cfive minutes to midnight\u201d call. It was late March 2015, and the Saudis wanted to know immediately whether the United States would support its imminent invasion of Yemen to suppress the Iranian-aligned rebels who had overthrown the Saudi-friendly government there. The Saudis characterized the military action as necessary to defend their borders from potential Iranian aggression, just as the United States was involved in negotiations with the Iranians over a nuclear deal.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cIt happened so quickly,\u201d Ben Rhodes, one of Mr. Obama\u2019s foreign policy advisers, said in an interview. \u201cObama typically had a very rigorous process around certainly the application of U.S. military force, and this felt very different.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">With few options, none of them appealing, the advisers recommended a high-risk plan to support a country with billions of dollars in American weapons but little experience in using them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Obama agreed despite misgivings. Not wanting to get embroiled in another war, he offered primarily defensive support without defining in clear terms what that meant. The arms industry would later seize on the ambiguity to sell the Saudis billions of dollars in both offensive and defensive weapons.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">On the day of the call, as Mr. Obama\u2019s advisers departed the White House Situation Room, at least a few had a sinking feeling. \u201cWe knew we might be getting in a car with a drunk driver,\u201d one adviser would later say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Within hours, their fears became reality.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">While the Saudi ambassador in Washington was briefing the media, Saudi planes were already over Yemen. In their first bombing run, around 2 a.m., the Saudis hit a residential area and killed 14 children. Through the night, neighbors pulled the dead and the living from the piles of stone that had once been their homes. Three of the children belonged to a man named Yasser Al-Habashi, who did not learn they had died until he awoke from a coma 13 days later.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">As evidence mounted in the following months that civilian casualties were rising, the Obama White House chose not to aggressively rein in the Saudis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cPeople make miscalculations all the time,\u201d Steve Pomper, a former senior official on Mr. Obama\u2019s National Security Council, said in an interview. \u201cBut it was striking to me as I reflected on my time in the Obama administration that it wasn\u2019t just that we embarked on this escapade \u2014 it\u2019s that we didn\u2019t pull ourselves out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\"><\/div>\n<section class=\"meteredContent css-o85ih2\">\n<div class=\"css-79elbk\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r15\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<figure class=\"css-i9mk6q e1g7ppur0\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"media\">\n<div class=\"css-1xdhyk6 erfvjey0\">\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><picture class=\"css-1j5kxti\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=600\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 3),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 3dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 288dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1200\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 2),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 2dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 192dpi)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-mobileMasterAt3x.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale&amp;width=1800\" media=\"(max-width: 599px) and (min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio: 1),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 1dppx),(max-width: 599px) and (min-resolution: 96dpi)\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1m50asq aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2020\/05\/16\/multimedia\/16yemenarms-10\/merlin_98980474_9df840dc-3262-457f-bb6c-538e01974a54-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"Smoke rising from Sana in 2015 after a Saudi-led airstrike killed seven people.\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"css-5qsc2a ewdxa0s0\"><strong><span class=\"css-16f3y1r e13ogyst0\" aria-hidden=\"true\">Smoke rising from Sana in 2015 after a Saudi-led airstrike killed seven people. <\/span><span class=\"css-cnj6d5 e1z0qqy90\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1tej78p0\">Credit&#8230;<\/span>Tyler Hicks\/The New York Times<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">In an extraordinary move, 30 former senior Obama officials signed <a href=\"https:\/\/nationalsecurityaction.org\/newsroom\/yemen-open-statement\" class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a public statement of regret<\/a> in November 2018 for what turned out to be, they said, a blank check of support for the Saudi military.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Pomper defended the government officials who oversaw Saudi policy, calling them serious, humane people. \u201cAnd yet we found ourselves locked into this terrible situation, unable to wrap it up, and handing it off to an administration that was going to handle it even worse than we did. And I wanted to understand why we did that.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">The result was a lengthy report published under the auspices of the International Crisis Group, a nonprofit organization devoted to conflict resolution. It said American arms sales acted \u201clike flypaper in trapping the U.S. in Yemen.\u201d The phrase echoed President Eisenhower\u2019s famous warning about the unseen political influence of the \u201cmilitary-industrial complex.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Gerald M. Feierstein, a former U.S. ambassador to Yemen under Mr. Obama who now works for the Middle East Institute, a think tank funded in part by the United Arab Emirates, said America should not turn its back on an important strategic ally, despite the civilian casualties. \u201cWe should be looking at whether or not we believe that either the Saudis are doing this purposefully or through negligence,\u201d he said in October. He added, \u201cI\u2019m not sure that either side has proved its case.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">Mr. Pomper said State Department officials tried to counsel Saudi pilots on ways to minimize civilian casualties, mostly without success. But even that effort ignored the larger issue.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"><\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1fanzo5 StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-nnwssh evys1bk0\">\u201cWe were in Yemen,\u201d Mr. Pomper said. \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t have been there.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"bottom-of-article\">\n<div class=\"css-1ubp8k9\">_____________________________________________<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1jp38cr\">\n<div class=\"css-19hdyf3 e1e7j8ap0\">\n<div>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px;\"><em>Michael LaForgia is an investigative reporter who previously worked for\u00a0<\/em>The Tampa Bay Times <em>and<\/em> The Palm Beach Post<em>.\u00a0While in Florida, he twice won the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting. <span class=\"css-4w91ra\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/laforgia_\" class=\"css-1rj8to8\"  target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span class=\"css-0\">@<\/span>laforgia_<\/a><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-19hdyf3 e1e7j8ap0\" style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">\n<div style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">\n<p><em>Walt Bogdanich joined <\/em>The Times<em> in January 2001 as investigative editor for the Business and Finance Desk. Since 2003, he has worked as an investigative reporter. He has won three Pulitzer Prizes.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-13ldwoe\"><em>A version of this article appears in print on <time class=\"css-10rvbm3\" datetime=\"2020-05-17T04:00:00.000Z\" data-testid=\"todays-date\">May 17, 2020<\/time>, Section A, Page 1 of the New York edition with the headline: Why U.S. Arms Take Grim Toll In Yemen War.<\/em><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/05\/16\/us\/arms-deals-raytheon-yemen.html\" >Go to Original &#8211; nytimes.com<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>16 May 2020 &#8211; President Trump sees arms deals as jobs generators for firms like Raytheon, which has made billions in sales to the Saudi coalition. The Obama administration initially backed the Saudis too, but later regretted it as thousands died.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":161052,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[950,767,1105,112,701,249,981,70,118,481,71,174],"class_list":["post-161051","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anglo-america","tag-invasion","tag-middle-east","tag-military-industrial-complex","tag-pentagon","tag-saudi-arabia","tag-trump","tag-uae","tag-usa","tag-war","tag-warfare","tag-white-house","tag-yemen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161051","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=161051"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161051\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/161052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=161051"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=161051"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=161051"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}