Friday, Jul 4, 2008
The desert kingdom's elite say a second term would be "catastrophic."
Sep 21, 2004 | Once staunch allies and supporters of President Bush, many influential Saudi Arabians -- whose nation the president's father, George H.W. Bush, protected from Saddam Hussein during the 1990-91 Gulf War -- view the prospect of Bush's reelection as "catastrophic." Indeed, on a trip to the desert kingdom earlier this month, I was hard-pressed to find anyone, at any level of society, in Saudi Arabia who speaks positively of President Bush, or looks favorably on the prospect of another four years of the Bush administration in the White House.
Many fear that a Bush victory in November would only mean more turmoil and violence in the Middle East. They point to the "failed policies" of the Bush administration as cause for their concern: the apparent descent into civil war in Iraq, the stalemate in the Palestinian-Israeli dispute (and the administration's pro-Israeli tilt), the alienation of the Arab and Islamic world, and the rising tension from U.S. accusations about Iran and Syria concerning their nuclear weapons programs and support of terrorism. Saudis also worry about a suggestion by U.S. neoconservatives inside the Bush administration calling for the breakup of the Saudi kingdom into two or three smaller states.
At a traditional "diwaniye," a men-only dinner, in Riyadh in early September, I sat down with some 25 Saudi businessmen to discuss the American presidential election. They seemed far more interested in the U.S. elections than in their own -- also scheduled for November -- despite the fact that theirs are being held for the first time in more than 30 years. Saudis are to elect half of the 178 municipal councils, the rest of which will continue to be appointed by the king.
The men at this gathering are not fundamentalists but the elite, politically influential segment of Saudi society -- CEOs of information technology companies, owners of big businesses, and doctors -- the movers and shakers. From their stylish corner offices in Riyadh's high rises, they tap away on computers connected to the world via broadband, keeping tabs on the price of Arabian light, Brent crude and breaking news. They drive elegant cars, fire off e-mails using fancy PDAs and close business deals worth billions of dollars. They are at ease discussing world affairs with visiting Western reporters -- chatting about Bush's poll numbers, the war in Iraq, security in the kingdom and other issues on which they keep abreast and are ready to offer their opinions.
The majority of these men studied at American universities. They remember their college days in Houston, Los Angeles or San Francisco with fondness. But the "bad effects the Bush administration is having on the Arab world," they say, are rapidly eroding their pleasant memories. "We all obtained our degrees in the United States; we felt at home there," one prominent Saudi said. "But now, the way they are treating Arabs in general and Saudis in particular, we are sending our children to British, Canadian and other colleges. In the long run it is America that will suffer," he said.
"Everything is good about America except its politics," said another Saudi man, to nods of approval from the group. When informed that Bush was leading Democratic contender John Kerry by as much as 11 percent in one poll, one of the dinner guests lamented that a Bush victory would be "catastrophic." Several of his friends nodded in agreement. They said they have a hard time understanding Bush's decision to go to war in Iraq.
Get Salon in your mailbox!