Bush on Saudi Rape Case: I "Don’t Remember" If I Brought It Up with King Abdullah

Posted by Amanda Terkel, Think Progress at 12:00 PM on December 4, 2007.

This post, written by Amanda Terkel, originally appeared on Think Progress

This morning, CNN's Ed Henry pointedly asked President Bush why he hasn't used his "influence" to "do something" about the 19-year old Saudi woman who was the victim of a brutal gang rape and later sentenced to 200 lashes. The Saudi court blamed her for being an "adulteress who invited the attack."

Bush refused to answer Henry's question, simply stating that King Abdullah "knows our position loud and clear." He said he recently spoke to King Abdullah "about the Middle Eastern peace," but isn't sure if he mentioned the Saudi case. "I don't remember if that subject came up."

When asked what went through his mind when he first heard about the case, Bush brushed aside his role as head of state, instead saying he would have been "very emotional" if it had happened to his daughter.

BUSH: My first thoughts were these.

What happens if this happened to my daughter? How would I react?

And I would have been -- I would have been -- I'd had -- I would have been very emotional, of course.

I'd have been angry at those who committed the crime. And I would be angry at the state that didn't support the victim.

And our opinions were expressed by Dana Perino from the pulpit -- from the podium.

Despite the President's strident rhetoric supporting global human rights, the administration has so far refused to condemn the Saudi government and push it to lift the sentence. When asked about the case last month, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said only that the situation is "very discouraging and outrageous. There is an appeals process and we hope that the verdict changes." State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said that the administration was "astonished," but had "nothing else to offer."

Looks like human rights aren't as important as old "family friends."

Tagged as: bush, rape, saudi arabia, king abdullah

Amanda Terkel is Deputy Research Director at the Center for American Progress and serves as Deputy Editor for The Progress Report and ThinkProgress.org at the Center for American Progress.