reporter: complicating the matter, the administration, with the guidance of son-in-law jared kushner, has put a lot of hope in saudi crown prince mohammed bin salman, who was hailed as a reformer. but more recently, he s criticized for his imprisonment of critics and now the question of whether he was involved in the khashoggi case. there are lots of flashing red signs that this was a reckless individual to be doing business with. but they ignored it all. reporter: khashoggi was a sharp critic of the prince. still the president s defenders are pressing on. donald trump is keep his eye on the ball. keeping his eye on the geopolitical ball. the national security ball. he s trying to figure out a way out, is what he s doing. reporter: the washington