At least that’s the way it appears at the moment. According to a new article in The New Republic the hand-wringing by high Saudi officials, whining that they want the redactions in the 911 report un-redacted is just a show. And GWB is a principal actor.

If their request were granted it would mean the end of US-Saudi relations as we know them. This just may be the most devastating story of the year, because if it’s true Bush will be proven to be a prevaricator and hypocrite beyond redemption. It will mean that he has knowingly protected those who make terrorism possible, its bankrollers.

The article quotes at length a high official in the know, and it’s a true bombshell.

“[A]n official who has read the [9/11] report tells The New Republic that the support described in the report goes well beyond [support for charities]: It involves connections between the hijacking plot and the very top levels of the Saudi royal family. “There’s a lot more in the 28 pages than money. Everyone’s chasing the charities,” says this official. “They should be chasing direct links to high levels of the Saudi government. We’re not talking about rogue elements. We’re talking about a coordinated network that reaches right from the hijackers to multiple places in the Saudi government.”

This week, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud Al Faisal flew to Washington for a hastily convened meeting with President Bush. Faisal publicly demanded that the 28 pages be declassified, but he had to have known in advance, and welcomed the fact, that his request would be denied–ostensibly friendly nations don’t normally send their foreign ministers to meetings halfway around the world to be surprised. For his part, Bush has insisted that revealing the 28 pages would compromise “sources and methods that would make it harder for us to win the war on terror.

[….]

The Bush administration has, of course, good reason for not wanting to ruffle the Saudis by declassifying the 28 pages. Saudi Arabia sits atop 25 percent of the world’s proven oil reserves and, through its dominant position in OPEC, essentially controls the global energy market.

This is astounding. If it’s all so obvious to the official quoted, it is certainly obvious to the White House. What it boils down to is the report has information that can help lead to key players behind 911, and these links and any reference to them have apparently been blacked out.

Could this be what Democrats have only dared dream of? If so, it could alter the war on terror, and the nation’s opinion of its beloved president. After all, if it’s 911-style terrorism we seek to obliterate, it seems Saudi Arabia — far more than Iraq — is the logical place to focus. But then, lots of people have been saying this for nearly two years now (Thomas Friedman of the NYT has brought it up many times.)

Bottom line: By deleting information about the Saudi connection to the 911 terrorists, Bush has protected them. Why? The only sensible answer, according to the article and to common sense, is the cliche, it’s all about oil. I never subscribed to that cliche, but I’m about to change my mind.

[via Josh Marshall, who says he’ll soon be providing some new inside information about the WMD search in Iraq.]

UPDATE: The cat is definitely out of the bag. It is even a banner headline over at Matt Drudge.

Edited, 11:58 a.m. SGP time, then again at 4:38 p.m. as new facts emerge.