House of Representatives Overrides Obama's Veto: Suing Saudi Arabia for 9/11 Becomes Legal

The United States House of Representatives, by passing a Senate bill, removed Barack Obama's ability to veto a lawsuit against Saudi Arabia in US courts. On Wednesday evening, 338 members of the House of Representatives voted to 74 against the bill, known as "Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism."

The House of Representatives vote will take place in the US Senate after the passage on Wednesday morning, October 28. The Senate voted 97-1 to override the US President's veto.

Last week, the US Congress passed a bill called "Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism," which would give families of victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks the legal right to sue Saudi Arabia for its possible role in those attacks.

This congressional decision was vetoed by Mr. Obama, but Republican representatives and even Mr. Obama's own party members in Congress said they would put it to a vote again.

If two-thirds of the Senate voted against the president's veto, the veto would be overridden, which 97 out of 100 senators voted in favor of on Wednesday morning.

This Senate decision is considered a blow to Barack Obama's foreign policy at the end of his second term as president.

This is the first time in Obama's presidency that the US Senate has reached the necessary votes to override a presidential veto. If two-thirds of the Senate votes to override a previously vetoed bill, the president's veto becomes ineffective.

According to the Hill, a publication that covers US government political news, not a single Democratic senator stepped onto the Senate floor in support of Obama's position.

A few weeks before the US presidential election and at a time of heightened public concern about Islamic terrorism, American lawmakers have demonstrated a strong stance against terrorism in front of public opinion with this vote.

Republican Senator John Cornyn and Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer were prominent figures in the Senate vote on the presidential veto.

"The fact that Democratic and Republican senators agree on the so-called 'Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism' bill ... is like a miracle," Senator Cornyn said before the vote.

The US Senate had previously expressed its readiness to thwart lobbying and efforts by the White House and Saudi Arabia to prevent Obama's veto from being overturned.

The repeal of the previous bill - which was vetoed by Obama - would allow Saudi Arabia to be sued in US courts for its involvement in the September 11 attacks.

Government justification

This is the first time in Barack Obama's two eight-year terms in office that one of his presidential vetoes has been overturned.

When vetoing the bill, Barack Obama warned that other countries could use the bill as an excuse to sue the country's military and civilian personnel, diplomats, and other citizens.

Mr. Obama said on Friday that the plan, if legalized, would reduce the impact of the government's counterterrorism efforts.

CIA Director John Brennan said on Wednesday, September 28, while emphasizing the pain caused by September 11 and expressing sympathy for the families of the victims, "I believe the Senate vote will have a significant impact on the national security of the United States. U.S. government officials working on behalf of our country abroad will be the most affected."

Victims' families

Families of 9/11 victims say the administration's justification for vetoing the bill is exaggerated and that immunity is not absolute. What the bill, called "Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism," does, they say, is give the voices of 9/11 victims a chance to be heard in court.

Source: Voice of America