Geraldo Rivera blasted President Biden for a planned visit to Saudi Arabia in July accusing him of going there to “whore himself.”
Rivera made the comments during Wednesday’s episode of The Five on Fox News.
“I deplore the fact that the president is going to go to Saudi Arabia and whore himself – excuse my language – to the Saudis, attempting to get them to increase production,” he said.
Geraldo added, “I think it’s really unseemly.”
His comments were in response to the White House, amidst skyrocketing gas prices, announcing that Biden will travel to the Middle East in July, including a stop in the oil-rich kingdom.
Read more: After Claiming He Would Make Them A ‘Pariah,’ Biden To Travel To Saudi Arabia
You can watch the full comments by Geraldo Rivera in the Fox News video below.
Biden Said Saudi Arabia Had Very Little Redeeming Value
During the 2020 presidential campaign, Joe Biden vowed to hold Saudi Arabia accountable and treat them as a “pariah” over their role in the killing of Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi.
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“We were going to, in fact, make them pay the price, and make them, in fact, the pariah that they are,” Biden said at a Democrat debate in 2019.
Biden also declared the government in Saudi Arabia has “very little social redeeming value.”
He seemed to recognize that they hold some value in terms of oil production, however, when reports surfaced in March that Biden was considering a trip to Saudi Arabia to “convince the Kingdom to pump more oil.”
NBC’s @PeterAlexander: “The President, as a candidate, said in Nov. of 2019 of Saudi Arabia–he said we would ‘make them pay the price & make them, in effect, the pariah that they are. There is very little social redeeming value’…Does President Biden stand by those words[?]” pic.twitter.com/5fqZVGMzbV
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) March 7, 2022
Related: Families of 9/11 Victims Criticize Biden For Calling On Saudi Arabia To Provide More Oil
Jamal Khashoggi’s Fiancée Hammers Biden
59-year-old veteran journalist Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated in 2018 at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul by agents of the Saudi government. The murder was, according to the CIA, carried out at the behest of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Even Biden, when making his ‘pariah’ comment, agreed with this claim.
When asked during the debate if he would punish Saudi leaders over Khashoggi’s death and “for executing nonviolent offenders and for torture,” Biden replied in the affirmative.
“Yes, and I said it at the time. Khashoggi was, in fact, murdered and dismembered, and I believe on the order of the crown prince,” Biden replied.
Khashoggi’s fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, called news of Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia was “disappointing.”
“If you have to put oil over principles and expediency over values can you at least ask where is Jamal’s body?” she asked.
Jamal Khashoggi’s fiancée slams Biden over Saudi crown prince MBS meet https://t.co/nkd3tfkEI1 pic.twitter.com/sJIPXpZxa7
— New York Post (@nypost) June 16, 2022
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said it was “devastating” to hear those words.
“I can assure you that when it comes to human rights, this is something that is a priority for this president,” Jean-Pierre tells @bgittleson when asked about Khashoggi’s fiancé saying she was disappointed by Biden’s plans to meet with Saudi crown prince. https://t.co/sFlitKx0FN pic.twitter.com/xX4ZCq6NNQ
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) June 15, 2022
Geraldo Rivera Criticizes Biden Letter To Oil Execs
Geraldo, meanwhile, continued to lambaste President Biden over an attempt to shame oil executives into lowering prices with a strongly-worded letter.
“Companies must take immediate actions to increase the supply of gasoline, diesel, and other refined product,” the letter states.
“A letter? What the hell is a letter?” an exasperated Rivera criticized. “Where is the energy to do something substantive … rather than the silly, writing a letter?”
Biden’s letter, first obtained by Axios, elicited strong and swift responses from Exxon and Chevron.
President Biden writes to oil executives complaining (!!!) the industry shut down too much refining capacity:
“At a time of war, refinery profit margins well above normal being passed directly onto American families are not acceptable” (full letter via @axios ) #OOTT pic.twitter.com/rOv2ANxxGD
— Javier Blas (@JavierBlas) June 15, 2022
Stay tuned for more in-depth coverage of the oil industry’s response by fellow contributor Becky Noble.