Capital District Times

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik and Senator Tom Cotton have criticized the Biden-Harris Administration's approach to Iran, claiming it has allowed Tehran to advance its nuclear capabilities without significant repercussions. In a letter addressed to President Joe Biden, they argued that the administration's policies have emboldened Iran.

"Since day one, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have appeased Iran in a desperate attempt to return to the failed Iran nuclear deal," said Congresswoman Stefanik. She further accused the administration of enabling Iran to increase its enriched uranium stockpiles and reduce its nuclear breakout time by not enforcing sanctions on Iranian oil exports and reversing Trump-era policies.

The lawmakers highlighted specific actions they believe have weakened American and allied positions. "Your administration allowed Iranian-backed militias to attack our troops more than 180 times while responding only about 11 times, diminishing any fear of American strength," they stated in the letter. They also criticized the removal of the Houthis from the list of designated terrorist organizations and restoring funding to entities like UNRWA, which they claim are linked to Hamas.

According to Stefanik and Cotton, these actions have led Iran closer to developing nuclear weapons. "Each act of appeasement strengthened and emboldened Iran," they wrote, suggesting that under Biden's watch, Iran may now be capable of producing a dozen nuclear weapons in a significantly shorter time frame compared to when President Trump left office.

The letter was co-signed by several other Republican lawmakers including Senators Ted Budd, Kevin Cramer, Katie Britt, Rick Scott, Deb Fischer, Roger Marshall, Pete Ricketts, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Cynthia Lummis, Joni Ernst, Bill Hagerty, John Cornyn, John Barrasso, Lindsey Graham, Mike Braun, John Thune; Congressmen Chris Smith (New Jersey-04), John H. Rutherford (Florida-05), Dan Crenshaw (Texas-02), Jim Banks (Indiana-03), Greg Murphy (North Carolina-03), Ben Cline (Virginia-06), Brandon Williams (New York-22), Rudy Yakym III (Indiana-02), Scott Franklin (Florida-15); Congresswomen Ashley Hinson (Iowa-01) and Ann Wagner (Missouri-02); as well as Congressmen Nick Langworthy (New York-23), Mark Alford (Missouri-04), Pat Fallon (Texas-04), Lance Gooden (Texas-05), Brad Finstad (Minnesota-01), Juan Ciscomani (Arizona-06), Randy Feenstra (Iowa-04), Ralph Norman (South Carolina-05) and Michael Guest (Mississippi-03).

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