October 18-2013
Sen. Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, says Iran ought to meet certain preconditions, or the president of the United States should never speak with him.
Cruz announced Saturday that he had filed a resolution in the Senate recommending Iran meet two preconditions—recognizing the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state and releasing, without conditions, all US nationals being “unjustly” held in Iran’s prisons—”before any future meeting between President Obama and President Rohani.”
“Congress needs to send a strong signal that direct communication with the leader of the free world is a privilege,” Cruz said in a statement, “particularly for a regime that has been as hostile as Iran has been towards America for more than three decades.”
Republicans commonly view a US president’s meeting with foreign leaders as conferring legitimacy on them, a view most Democrats dismiss as nonsense.
Cruz’s resolution decries Iran as a “committed state-sponsor of terrorist groups” and dismisses the country’s claim it is only seeking nuclear power for peaceful purposes. The Texas Republican said President Rohani and his government have yet to take “any practical steps” to halt its pursuit of nuclear weapons.