A slim bipartisan majority of senators endorsed the Trump administration’s plan to sell $13 billion in sophisticated weaponry to the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday, defying concerns about the UAE’s role in civil wars and likely war crimes and President Donald Trump’s rushed process of pushing through the arms deal.
The result is a big loss for lawmakers and activists who want a less hawkish U.S. foreign policy — and a signal that they have a lot of work to do under President-elect Joe Biden.
Two influential Democrats, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly of Arizona, were crucial to the deal’s survival. Both voted in favor of one part of it, armed drones for the UAE, and Sinema also approved the second aspect, selling a batch of F-35 fighter jets to the country.
“Really mindboggling votes,” Stephen Miles of the progressive group Win Without War tweeted of Sinema and Kelly after the vote. Arizona Daily Star columnist Tim Steller termed the senators’ move “disgusting.”
Defense giant Raytheon — which is crucial to the drones being considered — is based in Arizona. | 
