Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend from New York (Mr. Engel) for his leadership on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. This bill prohibits any waivers, reductions, or other relief from U.S. sanctions on Iran until Iran pays all court-ordered damage claims to U.S. victims. Those claims total about $46 billion. This bill would prevent the U.S. from implementing its commitments under the Iran deal, which is really what my friends on the other side are trying to do. Not being able to win directly, let's get at it indirectly and let's cover it with the patina of respectability. But the real issue is, cynically, how we use the plight of U.S. victims for another partisan shot. We all want to help American victims of Iran's terrorism and lack of justice, but this is not the way to help them. It would have the opposite effect by reducing the chance that any claims, in fact, would be paid because, by freezing assets, Iran wouldn't have the wherewithal to do what this bill says it should do before sanctions are lifted. Think about this: Iran owes $46 billion in U.S. claims, but it doesn't have the money right now, even if it wanted to pay. Iran only has access to about $20 billion of its own reserves. Realistically, the only funds that could be used are the frozen funds under U.S. sanctions held in banks around the world. Under this bill, the frozen funds couldn't be used to pay the claims, and all the money remains frozen until Iran pays the claims.…”