Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) stated Secretary of State John Kerry “sounds to me like he’s more interested in being the lawyer for the government of Iran” than he is for standing up for the rights of Americans, such as those who have claims against Iran on Monday’s “Situation Room” on CNN.
Cotton said, “The roadside bombs that Iran sent to Iraq blow up up over 500 American soldiers cost a lot less than $1.7 billion. The troops that they’re supporting in Syria right now slaughtering innocents and undermining the entire region only cost a few hundred dollars a month. The terrorists that they support in Hezbollah only costs tens of thousands of dollars on a weekly or monthly basis. $1.7 billion is an astonishing figure. And as Secretary Kerry said, first, this was not part of the nuclear deal. This was a standalone agreement, that didn’t have to be undertaken, unless it’s just part of the ransom that we had to pay to get innocent Americans back from Iranian captivity. And second, remember, this was a deal, if it was in fact about a weapons agreement, before the Islamic Revolution in 1979, that we made with the pro-American government of Iran, that was then overthrown by a violent revolution led by the ayatollahs, and we’re rewarding them now, by giving them back that previous regime’s money, with interest. Secretary Kerry talked about interest payment being required under the law. I’m not sure which law he’s referring to, but it sounds to me like he’s more interested in being the lawyer for the government of Iran than he is for standing up, for instance, as you said Wolf, for the rights of those 52 Americans, who still have lots of claims against Iran for the terrorism and the captivity in which they held them.”
After anchor Wolf Blitzer said, “What he’s suggesting is, the 1.7 billion that the US is now going to give Iran for the arms that were never delivered, it could have been a lot more, if the claims court in the Hague would have adjudicated it, could have been 6 billion he’s suggesting, so the US got a bargain.” Cotton responded, “I’m pretty confident that we’ve been able to avoid that kind of adjudication for 36 years now, that we’ve got very good lawyers in our State Department that could prevent that, if it is in fact about an arms deal that was never consummated, and not about something else.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.