The top lawmaker on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is writing legislation to impose more sanctions against Iran, and ensure the administration can’t withhold sanctions against that country to implement an international agreement without getting approval from Congress first.
Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said “there is a lot of agreement,” from both parties that sanctions legislation is needed, especially in response to country’s recent wave of ballistic missile tests.
But another key problem for Republicans is how President Obama decided unilaterally not to implement certain sanctions against Iran as it was negotiating the Iran nuclear agreement. Republicans opposed that move, and Corker’s legislation would require congressional approval for lifting sanctions.
“Any legislation to that end must also deal appropriately with the waiver issue, because I believe President Obama used the Iran waivers in a manner that Congress never intended,” Corker said.
Corker pledged to introduce legislation “in the coming days … to address this issue and hold Iran accountable both now and in the future.” The Senate is in recess until April 4.
Corker has not disclosed the details of his legislation but, it will likely include new sanctions that address Iran’s ballistic missile tests. His bill would join two others introduced this week that seek to impose more sanctions after Iran’s ballistic missile testing. The bill would also reauthorize the Iran Sanctions Act and addressing the build up of conventional weapons.
Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., the top Democrat on the committee, issued a statement Friday with Corker in which he also calls for sanctions legislation. Cardin said he was working with Corker on a bipartisan bill, but didn’t mention the waiver provision.
“Recent events in Iran underscore the need for a statutory framework to respond to Iran’s ballistic missile tests,” Cardin said.
This story was corrected to clarify that the bill does not deal with the Iran travel waiver.
