Washblog

Given Iran's unwillingness to suspend its nuclear programs, I co-sponsored legislation introduced by Senator Rick Santorum that would hold the current Iranian government accountable for its threatening behavior. If enacted, the Iran Freedom and Support Act (S. 333) would continue U.S. imposed sanctions, controls, and regulations relating to Iran's weapons of mass destruction until the President certifies to Congress that Iran has permanently dismantled its weapons programs and committed to non-proliferation. The President would also be given the authority to aid foreign and domestic individuals or groups financially or politically that support democracy and advocate for non-proliferation in Iran. In addition, this legislation would amend the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 to impose sanctions on any individual or group that provides Iran assistance in acquiring or developing weapons of mass destruction.
At this time, S. 333 is awaiting further review by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Please be assured that I will continue to monitor this situation closely.

Sincerely,
Maria Cantwell United States Senator

And then let's consider this story about opinions of the bill's sponsor in the insane and waning days of his campaign. I reprint a juicy quote here.

"The principal leader of this Islamic fascist movement is Iran," Santorum said. "I believe this is the greatest enemy we will ever face. This is the enemy of our generation. It is the challenge of our time. And yet, we tend to play politics with it here in America -- sadly."

We do tend to play politics with this issue indeed, do we not, former Senator Lunatic.

And then let's consider this story:

June 10, 2007
Lieberman: U.S. Should Weigh Iran Attack
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 6:18 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Joseph Lieberman said Sunday the United States should consider a military strike against Iran because of Tehran's involvement in Iraq.

''I think we've got to be prepared to take aggressive military action against the Iranians to stop them from killing Americans in Iraq,'' Lieberman said. ''And to me, that would include a strike over the border into Iran, where we have good evidence that they have a base at which they are training these people coming back into Iraq to kill our soldiers.''

And let's consider this story about the opinions of outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Peter Pace on the same matter

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Peter Pace appeared Tuesday to question Bush administration assertions that the Iranian government is supplying weapons to Shiite militant groups in Iraq.

"We know that the explosively formed penetrators are manufactured in Iran," Pace told Voice of America during a trip to Australia about what senior military officials call EFPs.

"What I would not say is that the Iranian government per se knows about this. It is clear that Iranians are involved and it is clear that materials from Iran are involved, but I would not say, based on what I know, that the Iranian government clearly knows or is complicit," Pace said.

So the Junior Senator from our state and MANY other leading Democrats sign onto a piece of legislation sponsored by the craziest Senator the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has ever elected. In his desperate bid for re-election he broadcasts widely and clearly the Administration's plan to take heat off themselves for Iraq by demonizing Iran and widening the war.

This plan is so insane and reckless, so utterly without merit, that a principal architect of the Iraq war - The Libby-Loving Chairman himself - takes the opportunity to call bullshit on it while on foreign soil. And yet the Democrat leadership ask us to understand the wisdom of their backing the bill. Many of these same persons even suggest that we back AIPAC Senator Joseph Lieberman against an anti-war opponent because both these actions are important to "give us the majority".

The logic, then, is not to offend voters by opposing the Republicans' strategy to rehabilitate the policy which has been their very undoing. In The Republican effort to appear "strong on defense" has produced one of the most monumental policy screw-ups in our nation's history, garnering Repubs a terrible beating at the polls. But in their terror of appearing "weak on defense", the Democrats not only join in on this policy (Iraq), then refuse to oppose it actively,  but they go on to support the Republicans' only hope of distracting the nation from the calamity.

Even leaving aside the incredible lies, contradictions and mistakes of America's Iran policy, leaving aside the potential to completely reignite the centuries-old conflict between Shia and Sunni, a mere glance at the REAL poll numbers should suggest to Dem leadership that a repeat of their Iraq complicity is stupid beyond words.

And yet they soldier on, and we with them.
Update [2007-6-12 15:42:45 by dlaw]: Bombing Iran will create Hizbullah in Iraq. It's just that simple. If and when any of the six Shiite holy cities in Iran is attacked, the Shiites in Iraq will go out of their minds and will fell they have no alternative but to make common cause with their Persian co-religionists.