• Saudi Arabia has strengthened its formal lobby efforts in the US, following the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and at a sensitive time for US-Saudi relations.
• Saudi Arabia was made a pariah by lobbyists after Khashoggi’s murder, with five major US clients jilting them in a single week after the killing.
• In November, Saudi Arabia contracted LS2Group, Summit Information Services, and Hathaway Strategies to help boost the kingdom’s reputation at a cost of about $1.5 million.

On November 1, the Embassy of The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia hired the Iowa-based communications firm LS2Group for a fee of $1.5 million, contracting the firm until October 31, 2020, filings under the Foreign Agents Registration Act show.

Its task: “Inform the public, government officials, and the media about the importance of fostering and promoting strong relations between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

LS2 has quietly become the newest version of pro-Saudi GOP think tank, Project for a New American Century, that authored the 1996 PNAC doctrine outlining regime change in seven Middle Eastern nations in 1996, commencing with a “Pearl Harbor-style” event to coalesce public opinion for near perpetual American presence and war in the Middle East. Several former members of PNAC have worked or are now working for the Des Moines-based concern.

“15 Saudis attack us on 9/11. The Saudi government kills a US journalist. A Saudi pilot in training kills 3 of our soldiers. Can anyone spot the common thread? My take: It’s way past time to quit arming and training the Saudis!” Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky tweeted.

Investigative journalist and radio host, Shad Olson first highlighted LS2’s under-the-radar influence on Republican politics in 2018, after publishing documents showing that a number of state Republican chairmen, including South Dakota Republican Party Chair, Dan Lederman, were officially registered as contractors and agents for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and were receiving exorbitant monthly fees for services rendered, including identifying pro-Saudi candidates for office, lobbying Senators and Congressmen for pro-Saudi policy and an attempted blocking of JASTA, a 2015-2016 Congressional Act to investigate the 9/11 terror attacks and allow litigation for damages for survivors and families of 9/11 victims. Lederman and others working for LS2Group were actively opposed to JASTA for the protection of the Saudi Royal Families from litigation by American victims of the attacks.

A few firms working for Saudi Arabia before the Khashoggi affair have continued to advocate for the country in Washington, DC, since, notably MSLGROUP and Hill and Knowlton Strategies.

“15 Saudis attack us on 9/11. The Saudi government kills a US journalist. A Saudi pilot in training kills 3 of our soldiers. Can anyone spot the common thread? My take: It’s way past time to quit arming and training the Saudis!” Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky tweeted.

READ MORE: SOUTH DAKOTA GOP CHAIR DAN LEDERMAN WORKED TO PROTECT SAUDI ARABIA FROM 9/11 LIABILITY