Congress creates new options on Iran: Economic and
Decision Brief No. 06-D 22 2006-04-27
(Washington , D.C.): At a moment when U.S. and world leaders are trying to decide what to do about Iran and its emerging capacity to act upon apocalyptic threats made by senior Iranian leaders, the House of Representatives yesterday created important new options. These options are a response to the mullahs’ support of Islamofascist terror aimed at American interests and allies around the world, their pursuit of nuclear weapons and their repression at home.
Formidable New Tools
By a sweeping, bipartisan vote of 397-21, the House adopted the Iran Freedom Support Act (IFSA) – which would replace the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act (ILSA) of 1996 which is set to expire in July – that is aimed at “hold[ing] the current regime in Iran accountable for its threatening behavior and to support a transition to democracy in Iran .” Among the many important provisions of the Act, several deserve special mention:
Section 202 expands the sorts of transactions that would subject corporations to economic sanctions for helping to develop Iran ‘s petroleum sector . Importantly, for the first time, the enablers of such transactions – “a private or government lender, insurer, underwriter, or guarantor” – would also be susceptible to sanctions.
Section 206 urges government and private sector investors to divest any company with holdings of at least $20 million in Iran ‘s energy sector , and requests that the President publish a list of those companies in the Federal Register. It also asks investment managers to make detailed information widely available on divested holdings.
Section 207 calls on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Global Security Risk to issue a report on companies’ exposure in Iran that includes legal, political, economic and financial risk analyses .
Section 301 encourages the President to withhold foreign assistance to any country whose companies will invest more than $20 million in Iran ‘s energy sector.
Section 402 permits the President to “provide substantial financial and political assistance to foreign and domestic individuals, organizations and entities that support democracy and the promotion of democracy in Iran.”
Will IFSA Become the Law of the Land?
Despite the broad support IFSA enjoys in the House, this legislation faces an uncertain future in the Senate – thanks, in part, to stiff opposition from the Bush Administration. The opposition ostensibly is animated by fear that provisions of the House bill would strain U.S. relations with other countries.
Other, more cynical considerations also appear to be operating. The lead sponsor of the legislation in the Senate is Republican Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania . Democrats who might otherwise support even robust legislation on Iran appear to be hanging back, anxious to avoid handing Sen. Santorum a significant legislative accomplishment in the midst of a hotly contested re-election campaign. Some – perhaps on both sides of the aisle – may calculate that inaction on IFSA will be tantamount to a repeal of the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, possibly clearing the way for new business opportunities for favored constituents.
Let us be clear: Should the Senate and the Bush Administration prevent the adoption of an Iran Freedom Support Act along the lines of the House version, the practical effect will be to abet the Islamofascist nuclear wannabes in Tehran by denying the United States tools it will increasingly need in its escalating crisis with the Iranian regime.
The Bottom Line
The prospect that ILSA might be allowed to expire is bad enough; the signal of unraveling U.S. resolve and the appearance of business interests trumping strategic ones can only further embolden the mullahs. Matters would be made still worse if that undesirable signal is greatly amplified by the spectacle of the leader of the Free World recoiling from measures that might greatly strengthen its hand, by curbing vital economic and financial life-support being provided to our enemies by other Free World governments and investors.
In short, the practical effect of opposing the House version of IFSA – and, thereby, eliminating options that could prove effective in thwarting, or at least checking, Tehran’s malevolence – could well be to reduce the United States to a true Hobson’s choice: Acquiesce to an Islamofascist, terrorist-sponsoring regime armed with nuclear weapons (and willing to share them with others) or use military action to try to prevent such a frightening prospect.
Mr. Gaffney is the host of Secure Freedom Radio, a nationally-syndicated radio program heard weeknights throughout the country. He is an associate author of highly acclaimed Shariah: The Threat to America and the publisher of over a dozen other books and monographs from the Center for Security Policy Press.
In April 1987, Mr. Gaffney was nominated by President Reagan to become the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy, the senior position in the Defense Department with responsibility for policies involving U.S.-USSR relations, nuclear forces, arms control, missile defense policy and U.S.-European defense ties. He acted in that capacity for seven months during which time, he was the Chairman of the prestigious High Level Group, NATO’s senior politico-military committee. He also represented the Secretary of Defense in key U.S.-Soviet negotiations and ministerial meetings.
From August 1983 until November 1987, Mr. Gaffney was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear Forces and Arms Control Policy under Assistant Secretary Richard Perle.
From February 1981 to August 1983, Mr. Gaffney was a Professional Staff Member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, chaired by the late Senator John Tower (R-Texas). And, in the latter 1970’s, Mr. Gaffney served as an aide to the late Senator Henry M. “Scoop” Jackson (D-Washington) in the areas of defense and foreign policy.
Mr. Gaffney holds a Master of Arts degree in International Studies from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.
Mr. Gaffney’s leadership has been recognized by numerous organizations including: the Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service Award (1987), the U.S. Business and Industry Council’s Defender of the National Interest Award (1994), the Navy League of the United States’ Alfred Thayer Mahan Literary Achievement Award (1999), and the Zionist Organization of America’s “Louis Brandeis Award” (2003), the Western Conservative Summit’s Stephen H. Long Award (2015), the Council for National Policy’s George Washington Military Leadership Award (2016) and the IMPACT Award from Ginni Thomas and United in Purpose (2017).
Mr. Gaffney was born in 1953 and resides in the Washington, D.C. area.
- The UN transforms itself into a world government - September 22, 2024
- Hezbollah is engaged in terrorism, not Israel - September 22, 2024
- Israel must seize the day - September 20, 2024