He was purging family members who were more loyal to CIA than the kingdom. He did that and then pivoted to China and Russia. (Bandar Bush ring a bell? )That is why he is vilified. Otherwise, he would be yet another Arab autocrat and US never had any problem with those, no matter what they did. This guy is guilty of being headstrong and independent..

That's exactly what I was saying. These weren't just random "back alley local chiefs" being oppressed for having different views. It was (and is) basic power struggles.