“Congress needs to make sure that this deal is about protecting America and protecting Americans – not protecting the president’s diplomatic legacy. The stakes are too high – and so far there are too many unanswered questions.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor about the bipartisan Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act. Barrasso specifically raised questions about the pending nuclear deal that the Obama Administration is negotiating with Iran.
Excerpts of his remarks:
“For the past couple of weeks we have been talking about some very important things on the floor of the United States Senate.
“One of the most important has been the possible deal with Iran over that country’s nuclear program.
“An agreement that could stop Iran’s efforts to get nuclear weapons, I believe, would be enormously significant.
“Making sure that the American people are involved in this process is also extremely important. There is bipartisan agreement on both of these things.
“Now we’re still debating the Iran Sanctions Review Act simply because it is so important. The debate has been going on.
“This bill goes a long way toward protecting the right of the American people to have a say on any deal – and the right for Congress to review the specifics of that deal.
“Now, I know there are Senators who have ideas for how to make this bill even better.
“I had an amendment last week, and I appreciated the chance to debate the amendment and to have a vote on it.
“That’s the important part of this process.
“It’s a big reason why the Senate has been so much more productive, I believe, this year than it has under the previous majority leader.
“Under Republican leadership, Senators of both parties have gotten back the right to really represent our constituents. Things we were elected to do.
“We’ve gotten back the right to work through committees, the right to offer amendments, and to make our case on the floor.
“Republicans and Democrats agree that the bill before us right now is important – congressional review of any Iranian deal is absolutely essential.
“Now we also agree that a nuclear-armed Iran would be a global threat to everyone, everywhere.
“Republicans and Democrats in the Senate know that it would be better to have no deal at all, than to have a deal that is a bad deal.
“Even President Obama has said that.
“The concern that many Americans have right now is that the deal that the president seems prepared to sign is nowhere near strong enough.
“When I go home to Wyoming every weekend, as I was this past weekend, the people that I talk with don’t believe that Iran has earned the right to be trusted.
“They are very concerned that the president is ready to sign a very bad deal.
“Now, I think those concerns are absolutely justified.
“Iran has avoided scrutiny of its nuclear program for years.
“What has happened to make the president think all of a sudden that Iran will come clean? I haven’t seen anything happen out there.
“President Obama and his team have been, I believe, too willing to negotiate without conditions – and too hesitant to take the strong stand that I believe must be taken.
“The president never wanted these economic sanctions in the first place.
“He said that sanctions would ruin his chances of negotiating a deal at all. Remember that?
“Well, Congress insisted anyway.
“Those sanctions didn’t drive Iran away – it is the sanctions themselves that brought Iran to the negotiating table.
“Now the president admits that the sanctions that he opposed, that the sanctions were a good idea.
“Now, he still wanted to get rid of them as quickly as possible.
“The president wanted members of his administration to do all the negotiating in private – and he wanted to decide by himself what he says is best.
“Republicans and Democrats both said that Congress needs to review any deal before getting rid of the sanctions. The sanctions imposed by Congress.
“We said that he doesn’t have the right to make such important decisions about sanctions imposed by Congress—he doesn’t have the right to eliminate them by himself.
“It is very important that we keep asking questions about any potential deal.
“Like what exactly is the Obama administration agreeing to on sanctions relief?
“I mean it’s interesting, Iran has said that the final deal must remove all of the economic sanctions on day number one.
“The administration has said that the sanctions will be lifted in phases – and only if Iran complies with different steps along the way.
“Well which is it? That’s a big difference—what the president is saying and what Iran is saying.
“The administration already gave Iran sanction relief from sanctions under the interim agreement in 2013. We saw how that turned out.
“It’s given Iran access to $12 billion in much-needed hard currency since then.
“The Obama administration has been unclear on exactly how much actual additional currency it plans to release under the final agreement.
“Tens of billions? I’ve heard the number as high as over a hundred billion dollars with sanctions relief.
“Once the rest of the sanctions are lifted, how can we make so sure that Iran doesn’t use the money to support terrorists who want to attack us—who want to attack America?
“Iran has a long history of supporting terrorists like Hamas, Hezbollah.
“Is that where the money is going to go?
“I don’t believe that Iran is going to use the money to build roads, or hospitals or schools.
“And what about Iran’s plans for their nuclear program?
“Now Iran says they want to do nuclear research for peaceful purposes.
“Have our negotiators made any progress on holding Iran to its word on that specific point?
“Back in November of 2013, Iran signed a framework agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“That was supposed to address the possible military aspects of Iran’s nuclear program. It named 12 areas—12 specific areas where Iran was going to address these concerns.
“The director general of that organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency, now says that Iran has addressed only one of the 12 that they promised to address. Only one of 12 things it was supposed to do under the last deal from 2013.
“What’s changed since then to make President Obama and the Obama administration think that Iran is going to comply with this deal?
“Why should we suddenly trust Iran now?
“What is there in the agreement that will force Iran to do what it says that it will do?
“Congress will need to keep a very close eye on any final agreement.
“Whatever happens, a deal with Iran must be enforceable, it must be verifiable, it must be accountable.
“We know that President Obama is looking to finish out his time by polishing his legacy.
“Congress needs to make sure that this deal is about protecting America and protecting Americans – not protecting the president’s diplomatic legacy.
“The stakes are too high – and so far there are too many unanswered questions.”