UNDER pressure from families bereaved by the terror attacks of September 11th 2001, and with the threat from Islamic extremism a potent talking-point in the general-election campaign, Congress has voted overwhelmingly to allow Americans to sue foreign governments for aiding and abetting terrorist acts in America. The decision on September 28th overturned a veto by President Barack Obama and brushed aside furious lobbying by Saudi Arabia, the primary target of the new law. A vote in the Senate passed 97-1, followed by a 348-77 vote in the House of Representatives, easily clearing the two-thirds hurdle for a veto override: the first of Mr Obama’s time in office.
The vote prompted something close to presidential scorn, with Mr Obama, in an interview with CNN television, calling the congressional decision a “mistake”, driven by the desire not to be seen “voting against 9/11 families right before an election”. His press spokesman went further, calling the Senate vote “the single most embarrassing thing” the chamber had done in decades.
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Source: United States http://ift.tt/2dxdxiH
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