The House of Representatives on Friday unanimously passed legislation that would allow the families of 9/11 victims to sue the government of Saudi Arabia.
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Passage of the bipartisan legislation will likely prove a pyrrhic victory as the White House has already indicated President Obama will veto the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA).
House Resolution 3815, also known as the “Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act” or JASTA, creates an exception to sovereign immunity created by a 1976 law, thus allowing U.S. citizens to sue foreign countries for terrorism that kills Americans on U.S. soil. This bill would change that.
House lawmakers passed the bill by a voice vote under suspension of the rules, about an hour after a solemn ceremony on the Capitol steps to remember the 9/11 attacks. President Obama, however, has threatened to veto the bill, which essentially strips foreign nations of immunity from American lawsuits.
The concern is that the law could damage the U.S.’ relationship with Saudi Arabia and create a risky situation for American officials overseas.
“We believe there needs to be more careful consideration of the potential unintended consequences of its enactment before the House considers the legislation”, the official said. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir has warned that if the bill became law, the country would sell $750 billion in American assets, including U.S. Treasury securities.
The legislation gives victims’ families the right to sue in USA court any elements of the Saudi government that may have played a role in the 2001 terrorist attacks that killed thousands of Americans. This legislation would change longstanding worldwide law regarding sovereign immunity.
“The president of the United States continues to harbor serious concerns that this legislation would make the United States vulnerable in other court systems around the world”, Earnest added.
“We wanted it to come to the floor, symbolically before the 15th anniversary”, said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., the bill’s sponsor in the House.
According to sources familiar with the documents, the information in the pages lays out a number of circumstances that suggest it’s possible two of the 9/11 hijackers living in California in the months leading up to the attack were receiving operational support from individuals loyal to Saudi Arabia.
“The unity Americans felt in the days after 9/11 lives on in a determination to hold whoever was complicit in attacks on US soil accountable, as existing law provides and as JASTA clarifies”.
Sens. Schumer and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) wrote to Obama later Friday urging him to sign the bill into law.
The bill now goes to the desk of Obama, who has strongly suggested said he will veto it, as it could strain relations with Saudi Arabia and could open the door to retaliatory lawsuits against USA citizens overseas.
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Saudi Arabia has long denied such allegations and campaigned hard against the bill – but supporters shrugged off that pressure, arguing that if Saudis had done nothing wrong, they had nothing to worry about.
