On the recordDecember 13, 2017
Mr. Chairman, since our founding, and as Ronald Reagan emphasized regularly, America has stood as a shining city upon a hill whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere. Today we have an opportunity to shine a little brighter. As we continue our battle to defeat terrorism, the Islamic Republic of Iran remains dangerously corrupt. While the average Iranian earns a mere $15,000 a year, corrupt, top political and military leaders control an estimated one-third of the nation's total economy. These same leaders are, more often than not, the same ones who repeatedly provide support for acts of terrorism in the Middle East and continue to sponsor terrorist groups around the world. Unfortunately, the Iranian Government continues to tolerate this corruption, which is why the State Department has named Iran as a country of primary concern for money laundering and it continues to be listed as a state sponsor of terrorism. These officials who perpetuate such destructive and destabilizing behavior should and need to be exposed. Today, I encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 1638, the Iranian Leadership Asset Transparency Act. This bill will require a list of the known assets of senior Iranian officials to be made publicly available in all three of Iran's major languages. Specifically, the U.S.…





