A very radical resolution that would actually endorse an Israeli attack on Iran in advance has been introduced in the House (H. Con. Res. 115). It has drawn 67 co-sponsors from the 435 House members, but isn’t expected to go anywhere.
Meanwhile, liberals have lined up behind H. R. 4173, a bill that would order the president to name a special envoy for Iran to pursue diplomatic measures to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and to prevent a war. The bill would also rescind in statute the State Department policy that bars diplomats from having any contact with Iranian officials without prior authorization from the secretary of state. But that bill has only 21 co-sponsors and is going nowhere.
The bulk of the attention, however, is focused on a resolution in each chamber that urges a) “increased economic and diplomatic pressure on Iran to secure an agreement” to assure Iranian compliance with UN resolutions, b) to reject any policy to accept an Iranian nuclear-armed state, and c) to reject a policy that would accept an Iran that has the capability to build a nuclear weapon but has not done so.
That last section has raised objections from many liberals. But this resolution—S. Res. 380 in the Senate and H. Res. 568 in the House—is just a resolution, not a bill. Resolutions have no force of law and do not bind the government to anything. They are just expressions of congressional opinion and well loved by members of Congress who can then go home and tell voters how much they are doing.
These resolutions already have majority support. The Senate resolution has 67 co-sponsors from 100 Senators. The House resolution has 231 con-sponsors from among 435 representatives. The House resolution is sponsored by Rep. Eleana Ros-Lehtinen, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who is expected to spirit the resolution to the floor soon, where it will enjoy overwhelming passage.
The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) and about two dozen peace organizations have written Congress opposing S. Res. 380 and H. Res. 568, saying they would “open the door to war.”