GOP, Dems push Obama on Iran sanctions

Reps. Reid Ribble, R-Wis., and Seth Moulton, D-Mass., are forging a new bipartisan effort aimed at holding Tehran's feet to the fire, and say they aren't happy with the Obama administration's failure to sanction Iran after it tested ballistic missiles.

The pair have teamed up to write a resolution they say will put on record that Congress won't tolerate violations of the nuclear agreement, and reassure U.S. allies that Washington remains serious about punishing Tehran for its support of terrorism in the Middle East.

"It's important for Americans to remember that Iran is still an enemy of the U.S. and supports international terrorism," Moulton told reporters on a conference call Wednesday. "As a combat Marine in Iraq, I personally saw American troops killed by Iranian-backed militias and you saw [those same] militias kidnap three Americans in Baghdad last week."

Moulton is a Marine officer who served four tours in Iraq from 2003 to 2008. Ribble, who has served in Congress since 2011, is a member of the conservative Liberty Caucus.

The bill would ensure that the International Atomic Energy Agency, which is tasked with inspecting Iran's nuclear sites, has the additional funding it needs to ensure Iran's compliance with the nuclear agreement, and reaffirms critical U.S. relationships with Israel and Gulf allies. It promises to renew Congress' commitment to Israel's missile defense system and pledges to finalize the 10-year memorandum of understanding, providing Israel with $3.1 billion in funds for military support.

The measure also calls on President Obama and the international community to remain committed to countering Iran's harmful actions throughout the Middle East and across the world.

The resolution, they say, already has additional support from Democratic Reps. Joe Kennedy of Massachusetts and Gerry Connolly of Virginia, as well as GOP Rep. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina. Ribble and Moulton are hoping the strong bipartisan backing will help move it through the Foreign Affairs Committee and onto the House floor rapidly.

Ribble said the measure would put Iran on notice that Congress will continue to provide rigorous oversight and has not ceded its role to the Obama administration.

"We will pay attention to any type of minor or major violations of the [nuclear agreement] … we need to make sure that Iranians leaders and our own administration knows that Congress is serious about its oversight," Ribble said.

Moulton said he came up with the idea for the bill after growing frustrated with the Obama administration's lackluster response to Iran's testing of ballistic missiles in October and November.

"There is some concern in Congress that the administration has not done enough to hold Iran accountable," Moulton said. "Frankly, if we were satisfied with the administration's response to date, we wouldn't have written the resolution."

While he called the targeted sanctions the administration imposed on Iran for the ballistic missile testing earlier this month "a step in the right direction," he said they were too little, too late.

"I'm not convinced yet that it will be sufficient enough and it took some time," he said. "I think part of this is showing that we are going to have a fast response" to violations unrelated to the nuclear deal.

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