GOP congressmen wish to unleash Israel on Iran

Iran Times International July 30, 2010:A large group of congress- men—10 percent of the House membership—has introduced a resolution supporting a military attack on Iran by Israel. The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) is trying to organize formal opposition to the resolution. But a former stiffer in the House of Representatives told the Iran Times the legislation appeared to be intended more as a campaign tool by Republicans in the fall elections than any serious piece of legislation. The bill is House Resolution 1553. It was introduced July 22 and has a total of 46 co-sponsors—45 Republicans and one Democrat, freshman Rep. Parker Griffith of Alabama. As a resolution, the text would have no binding impact even if passed. Resolutions are used to express opinions while not mandating any action or setting any policy. However, the chance of the resolution passing or even garnering a hearing in the House—is very remote, according to the former House staffer. “The House is controlled by Democrats and this bill is sponsored 98 percent by Republicans. It got a thumbs down the minute it was introduced,” he told the Iran Times. But he emphasized that the highly unbalanced sponsorship suggested this was a political ploy to be used in the November elections. “When you are going at legislation seriously and really want something to pass, you emphasize getting co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle,” he said. “You want and need to show broad support. When 98 percent of the co-sponsors come from one party, it looks like those folks want to use this legislation in their fall campaigns.” He said the bill’s supporters may feel this will help them raise funds from pro-Israel contributors. The resolution is six pages long and goes through 28 “whereas” clauses that laud Israel and cite President Ahmadi-nejad’s anti-Israel harangues. The key words are in the concluding “resolved” clause, which would have the House “express support for Israel’s right to use all means necessary to confront and eliminate nuclear threats posed by Iran,… including the use of military force if no other peaceful solution can be found within a reasonable time.” This Congress has only six more weeks of scheduled sessions after the resolution was introduced, so there really isn’t time to take up the legislation. And all pending bills will die at adjournment. In Tehran, Hassan Abedini, a local political analyst, also did not take the resolution seriously. He said the legislation had been introduced “merely for domestic uses.”

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