ON TUESDAY, November 8, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee held a previously-postponed hearing, titled “Saudi Arabia: Friend or Foe in the War on Terror?” The object of the hearing was to air expert comment on the Saudi Arabia Accountability Act of 2005 (see here). Specifically, the hearing examined a Freedom House report titled “Saudi Publications on Hate Ideology Invade American Mosques,” which was issued last January.

The proposed Saudi Arabia Accountability Act, shepherded by Sen. Arlen Specter, has failed to muster much support in the Senate; some senatorial critics of the Saudis consider it too weak, others are fearful of Islamic reaction. The very action of holding the hearing was denounced by James Zogby, founder and president of the Arab American Institute.