Chris Dodd: “I am concerned that the powers that be in the People's Republic of China, or elsewhere, may misread the vote as somehow…”

“I am concerned that the powers that be in the People's Republic of China, or elsewhere, may misread the vote as somehow rejection of our concern on the issue of nuclear proliferation. Nothing could be further from the truth. This vote that occurred is obviously one where most of us felt very deeply that the underlying agreement is of critical importance, as is the subject matter of the amendment offered by our friends and colleagues from Tennessee and New Jersey. But it is the strong view of many of us that this was an unrelated matter and the amendment, as drawn, was flawed in several respects. Specifically, the amendment called for the imposition of unilateral sanctions against the People's Republic of China, Russia, and North Korea for past and prospective proliferation activities. Although the amendment did give the President the authority to waive these sanctions under certain circumstances, it also provides for the congressional challenge of the President's use of that authority under expedited procedures. Clearly, the issue the sponsors sought to address in this amendment is a deeply serious one, with significant national security and foreign policy implications.”