Staff Reports
Congress is led by U.S. Representative Jim Banks (R-IN) in its effort to reinstate severe sanctions and penalties against the regime that supports terrorism in Iran. Due to the Biden administration's excessive leniency, Iran has been able to increase its funding of dangerous terrorist organizations around the globe. In introducing the Maximum Pressure Act, Banks is joined by more than eighty of his House colleagues, including the chairman of the Republican Study Committee, Kevin Hern (R-OK), and the chairman of the RSC National Security Task Force, Joe Wilson (R-SC). By enacting this legislation, the "maximum pressure" campaign initiated by the Trump administration against Iran would be formally established as law, impeding the ability of the Biden administration to defrost Iranian funds or lift sanctions on Iran's missile program.
GOP Lawmakers Seek to Codify Trump-Era 'Maximum Pressure' Campaign Against Iran
https://t.co/EHI6TL7ogR— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 30, 2023
This legislation, according to Banks and his colleagues, represents the most stringent sanctions ever suggested for Iran. Approval of this legislation would in effectuate sanctions against the regime's leader, impose severe limitations on Iran's capacity to support terrorism, and compel the Biden administration to impose sanctions on Iranian oil sales, a substantial revenue stream for the violent regime. In addition, the measure would grant Congress greater authority to impede President Biden's ability to withdraw sanctions against Iran or provide additional funds, as well as to reestablish ties with the Iran nuclear deal.
The Maximum Pressure Act further encompasses a formally issued declaration attributing responsibility to Iran for the October 7 attack on Israel, which was executed by Hamas terrorists with Iranian support. This assault incited a redoubled effort to exert maximal pressure on Iran. The act would reallocate the $6 billion in unfrozen Iranian funds to the Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund of the United States. Furthermore, the proposed legislation would broaden the scope of sanctions against Iran's ballistic missile program and weapons sales, including kamikaze drones, prohibit any rewards for apprehension of terrorists implicated in the attack on Israel, and blacklist all Iranian banks that have managed to elude sanctions thus far.
A report on Iran's influence and intelligence operations in the United States, including an investigation into whether Iranian agents have infiltrated the federal government, is also mandated by the act. In addition, it requests a report detailing whether the relaxation of sanctions has enabled Iran to increase its financial support for terrorist proxies. Representative Banks argues that the appeasement policy of the Biden administration has increased global peril. He supports a reestablishment of the Trump administration's robust policies, which placed an emphasis on achieving peace through strength. In addition to praising the previous "maximum pressure" campaign's achievements, Representative Hern pledges to vigorously advocate for this bill's passage. Representative Wilson underscores the heightened gravity of the Iranian threat in light of recent incursions by Iranian-backed organizations against U.S. and Israeli forces. He expresses gratitude for the Republican Study Committee's endeavors to ensure accountability for the heinous Iranian regime.
It is evident that Rep. Banks and his colleagues consider the lenient stance adopted by the Biden administration with regard to Iran to have been a catastrophic failure. They recognize that in order to prevent Iran from financing terrorism and posing a threat to the United States and its allies, severe sanctions and penalties must be reinstated. They hope that by passing the Maximum Pressure Act, they can reverse the damage caused by the Biden administration's weak posture and return to the Trump administration's policy of peace through strength.
