On Thursday’s “CNN News Central,” Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) argued that if there is a deal with Iran, it has to include their funding of terrorist proxies in it, “because if they are funneling their oil revenues to Hezbollah, to Hamas, to the Houthis in Yemen, that is still going to destabilize the region and threaten our allies’ security and our own security.”
After referring to “coercive diplomacy” against Iran, Auchincloss said, “I don’t believe it could work just siloed for nuclear development. It has to have the funding of proxy terror forces throughout the Middle East, as well, included in it.”
Co-host Kate Bolduan then cut in to say, “Which Iran wants off the table.”
Auchincloss responded, “Which Iran wants off the table. And that’s just not acceptable, because if they are funneling their oil revenues to Hezbollah, to Hamas, to the Houthis in Yemen, that is still going to destabilize the region and threaten our allies’ security and our own security. What also needs to be on the table is Internet freedom and the lifting of repressive tactics…against the Iranian people. And this is something the president actually does have authorization for. Congress authorized and appropriated for the president to surge direct-to-cell technology into Iran, to allow the protesters to communicate with one another, even when the regime was trying to GPS jam their technology. The president didn’t do it. He missed the best opportunity he had to tap into the courage of the Iranian people. And now he’s playing catch-up.”
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