The Biden administration’s agreement with Qatar to temporarily withhold $6 billion in Iranian oil assets has failed to quell bipartisan calls for more forceful action against the Islamic Republic.
GOP senators on Tuesday intensified calls on President Biden to permanently freeze the funds, which he agreed to release to Tehran in exchange for the release of five Americans wrongly detained in Iran.
“We know that Iran bankrolls Hamas,” said Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee Republican. “And yet, it is perplexing why this administration refuses to issue a formal decision to freeze the $6 billion.”
Mrs. Blackburn and other Republican senators are pushing legislation to freeze the Iranian assets permanently. Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, endorsed a version authored by GOP presidential candidate and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott. A proposal from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, and Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton was rejected Tuesday by Vermont Democratic Sen. Peter Welch from passing by unanimous consent of the chamber because the assets were earmarked for humanitarian purposes.
The White House and Qatar, which is holding the money, last week reached a “quiet agreement” to keep the assets out of Iran’s hands until further investigation into the country’s potential involvement in Hamas’ deadly terror attacks against Israel.
“It’s still sitting in a Qatari bank. All of it. Every dime of it,” White House National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby told reporters last week, declining to elaborate.
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The pressure on Mr. Biden to more aggressively counter Iran, which for years has propped up terrorist groups such as Hamas with weaponry, training and money, continued to escalate among lawmakers from both parties.
A bipartisan group of more than 100 House lawmakers signed onto a letter Tuesday saying Mr. Biden should “take all necessary steps to cut off Iranian funding sources.” That included “maximum enforcement” of U.S. sanctions, ending Iran’s oil trade with China, urging European allies to renew “snapback” sanctions on Iran and pressuring Qatar and Turkey to stop supporting Hamas.
Senate Minority Whip John Thune, South Dakota Republican, said that language should be included in a forthcoming bipartisan Israeli aid package that forces the $6 billion Iranian assets to remain out of the country’s reach.
“I don’t think those dollars ought to be made available in light of what we now know and given what potentially is ahead in terms of the relationship with Iran,” Mr. Thune told The Washington Times. “I think the administration got a very harsh wake-up call about any belief that they could work in a constructive way with Iran.”
A growing faction of Senate Democrats, most of whom face competitive reelections next year, have also called for the funds to remain frozen. But some of those members said they were satisfied with Mr. Biden’s temporary freeze.
Sen. Joe Manchin III, West Virginia Democrat, chided Republicans for “playing politics” because they would fail to redirect the $6 billion “for a purpose that makes a difference.”
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“I’d like to redirect the funds, basically once they have proven — if they can prove — that Iran is directly or indirectly involved in this war,” Mr. Manchin said. “Those funds would be directed to helping the war effort, [for] Israel and also helping some of these innocent civilians.”
Sen. Jacky Rosen, Nevada Democrat, said the U.S. should “see how events unfold in the Middle East” before taking further action with the funds.
“Freezing this allows us to take this pause and determine where we’re going to go as we see what’s happening,” she said.
• Mallory Wilson contributed to this report.
• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.
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