So, will we ever find out the internal dynamics of the $400 million non-ransom that used for leverage by an administration that said we don’t pay ransom, even though it was stipulated that the monies wouldn’t be handed over until the four detained Americans were released? In other words, it was a ransom. Yet, the taxpayers will probably never know how their $1.7 billion was paid to Iran over an arms deal dispute that dates back to 1979; the $400 million was part of that sum appropriated by Congress earlier this year. Why? Well, Obama has blocked congressional inquires. Adam Kredo of The Washington Free Beacon has more:
The Obama administration is withholding from Congress details about how $1.3 billion in U.S. taxpayer funds was delivered to Iran, according to conversations with lawmakers, who told the Washington Free Beacon that the administration is now stonewalling an official inquiry into the matter.The Departments of State, Treasury, and Justice have all rebuffed a congressional probe into the circumstances surrounding the $1.3 billion payment to Iran, which is part of an additional $400 million cash payout that occurred just prior to the release of several U.S. hostages and led to accusations that the administration had paid Iran a ransom.
The Obama administration has admitted in recent days that the $400 million cash delivery to Iran was part of an effort to secure the release of these American hostages, raising further questions on Capitol Hill about White House efforts to suppress these details from the public.
The $400 million was part of a $1.7 billion legal settlement reached with Iran earlier this year. Congressional inquiries into how this money reached Iran are failing to get answers.
Sens. Mark Kirk (R-IL), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), and David Perdue sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry demanding some more details about this payment, especially given that Iran is a state sponsor of terrorism. In their letter, they also asked if Iran would have released our citizens if the payment weren’t made, was the payment linked to their release, and wanted to know about guarantees that these funds would not be used to fund terrorism. It’s probably safe to say that this request will be put on the back-burner. Right now, some serious spin/damage control needs to be executed to explain why we apparently pay ransom for hostages now.
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