Federal lawmakers are blasting President Joe Biden's decision to release $6 billion to the terrorist state of Iran, arguing the secret backroom deal will bankroll further terrorism and encourage the Islamic state to kidnap Americans.
Under the deal, the United States will release $6 billion in frozen assets, in exchange for the release of five Americans held prisoner in Iran. Federal law prohibits paying terrorists directly to secure American prisoners.
Senators Tim Scott (R-SC), James Lankford (R-OK), Jim Risch (R-ID), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Katie Britt (R-AL), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Steve Daines (R-MT), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Budd (R-NC), J.D. Vance (R-OH), John Cornyn (R-TX), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), John Hoeven (R-ND), Todd Young (R-IN), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Thom Tillis (R-NC), John Kennedy (R-LA), John Barrasso (R-WY), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) are demanding answers from the Biden administration regarding the secret payoff.
In a letter to Secretaries Blinken and Yellen, the Senators wrote, “When the Obama Administration released $400 million in liquidated assets to Iran in 2016, we warned that this dangerous precedent would put a price on American lives.”
“Seven years later, the current Administration is providing a ransom payment worth at least fifteen times that amount to the world's largest state sponsor of terror, in yet another violation of the United States' long-standing ‘no concessions' policy,” the senators write/
“In the release of Executive Order 14078 on July 19, 2022, the White House admitted that ‘terrorist organizations, criminal groups, and other malicious actors who take hostages for financial, political, or other gain—as well as foreign states that engage in the practice of wrongful detention, including for political leverage or to seek concessions from the United States—threaten the integrity of the international political system and the safety of United States nationals and other persons abroad.' The release of such a significant sum to the Iranian regime runs entirely counter to that claim and will only serve to encourage additional hostage taking for financial or political gain,” they warn.
A copy of the full letter can be found below.
Dear Secretaries Blinken and Yellen:
We write to express significant concern over the Administration's decision to release approximately $6 billion in frozen assets to the Islamic Republic of Iran in exchange for the release of five American detainees. While we firmly believe the United States must use every appropriate resource to secure the release of American citizens wrongfully detained overseas, this decision will reinforce an incredibly dangerous precedent and will enable the Iranian regime to increase its destabilizing activities across the Middle East.
When the Obama Administration released $400 million in liquidated assets to Iran in 2016, we warned that this dangerous precedent would put a price on American lives. Seven years later, the current administration is providing a ransom payment worth at least fifteen times that amount to the world's largest state sponsor of terror, in yet another violation of the United States' long-standing “no concessions” policy. In the release of Executive Order 14078 on July 19, 2022, the White House admitted that “[t]errorist organizations, criminal groups, and other malicious actors who take hostages for financial, political, or other gain—as well as foreign states that engage in the practice of wrongful detention, including for political leverage or to seek concessions from the United States—threaten the integrity of the international political system and the safety of United States nationals and other persons abroad.” The release of such a significant sum to the Iranian regime runs entirely counter to that claim and will only serve to encourage additional hostage taking for financial or political gain.
We are also worried that your administration is attempting to sidestep Congress and pursue other pathways to financially compensate Iran in an attempt to renegotiate a successor to the ill-fated 2015 nuclear deal. Any agreement with the Iranian regime that entails financial reward for malign behavior is wholly unacceptable.
Given the risk this agreement poses to the safety of American citizens overseas and broader United States national security interests, we request an in-person briefing, as well as written responses to the following questions, within 30 days:
1 The Iranian assets to be released were initially frozen at South Korean financial institutions in support of existing U.S. sanctions policy. Does the release of the funds violate that policy? Will the President issue a waiver and required report to Congress consistent with Section 1245 of the FY2012 National Defense Authorization Act?[1]
2) Financial assets are fungible. How can your departments guarantee that the funds will only be used for humanitarian purposes and will not free up additional resources that the Iranian regime can use to support terrorist networks and weapons proliferation, or increase its nuclear enrichment activities?
3) Iran is well-versed in sanctions evasion. What specific mechanisms are in place to prevent the diversion of these assets to terrorism and to ensure the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sufficient visibility on each proposed transaction?
4) Were any alternative funding mechanisms discussed with Iran to facilitate the exchange of detainees?
5) What funding mechanisms have you discussed with Iran to limit its nuclear weapons development?
6) Will you commit to not allowing Iran to access its Special Drawing Rights at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and to oppose any efforts by the IMF to facilitate such access?
7) What additional steps are you taking to ensure that Iran does not access any form of compensation from the IMF and other international financial institutions?
We appreciate your prompt attention to this inquiry.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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The letter the Representatives wrote to the president was too long. He wouldn’t make it to the first bullet point. Keep in mind that this administration simply doesn’t care what’s good for the American people. They don’t care what you think. They are “in charge” and remind us of that every day. I’m certain that there are many good, decent Democrats out there. But they are not aware of what the “new” Democrat party has been up to for the last few decades. Based on how quickly they have destroyed our society and economy in just four short years, they should NEVER be allowed near the levers of power again. They cannot be trusted.
Again Republicans stand around a do nothing but talk
The House has the sole power to originate revenue bills AND declare war. It was abominably brazen for BiteMe to send $$$ to Ukraine, to send troops and equipment there without a Declaration of War. Our cowardly, negligent, corrupt Congress.
Simple enough, just wait until the budget comes back up, and withold that exact same amount from one of their already bloated pet agencies. I’m thinking that the IRS would be a prime example. Sure, biden is only returning what’s supposedly already iran’s money, but just to prove a point, that actions have consequences.
Wait a minute – did not these ball-less, gutless, political cowards, and politically stupid republicans run and win on the ‘control the purse strings’? But now they are complaining? I am beginning to think the current republican base is more dangerous than JoeBama. America we are in trouble!
so how does your irrelevant statement relate? here is a hint. it does not. see if you an do a better job keeping up with the America and the rest of the world.
Yup, my first thought was ‘didn’t Obama give them a boatload of money when he was “officially” in the Whitehouse?’
This is the same “ game “ Obama played when in the dark of night he paid $400 MILLION as ransom for 4 Americans ! Sounds familiar doesn’t it , only that was 2016 ! Now, Hussein Obama is pulling Biden’s strings to do it again, but for $6 BILLION !
The money was invested by Iran in the US of A, it was their money, same thing when Obama was in, IT WAS IRAN”S MONEY
so what
Payoff to Iran
This and like all otjher allocated funds doesn’t have any paper trail or accounting of where money goes. This is one reason we are in such a mess today. Money gets suuffled around different agencies and no accounting of it is recorded.
Why does Congress release the $6 billion? Fraud Joe isn’t responsible for his Alzheimer’s actions. Stop paying foreign countries money!
Rather than paying Iranian Bandits, how about this country utilizing it’s very expensive military to dissuade this hostage taking/kidnapping racket.
We know that both, the Obama and Biden Administrations have given billions of dollars to Iran, fully knowing by doing so, Americans are financing rocket strikes against Israel and speeding up the process of Iran developing nukes to destroy Israel and reach the US with. Obama and Biden have to have benefitted in some way or they wouldn’t have gone against the public interest and done so. How could they possibly benefit?