House Leadership Still Backs Iran Sanctions, Senate Split

Sanction Plans Are Subject of Heavy Lobbying

The White House has come out very publicly in its opposition to imposing more sanctions on Iran, insisting it would threaten ongoing diplomacy. Israel is on the opposite side, lobbying the US Congress heavily for the sanctions, on the grounds that diplomacy is getting in the way of their war plans.

With both houses of Congress shaping up to be the battleground for this debate, the House leadership still seems largely in favor of imposing new sanctions, with Rep. Mike Coffman (R – CO) expressing “deep concern” about diplomacy in general and seeing its sabotage as a net positive.

The Senate seems a little more split on the matter, with Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D – SD) determined to hold off on new sanctions until the Obama Administration says otherwise.

The talks almost netted a deal with Iran over the weekend, but are now paused for 10 days, giving lobbyists a lot of time to press Congress on both sides, and hawks time to try to sabotage the talks before they resume.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.