[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 100 (Wednesday, June 30, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1252-E1253]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2194, COMPREHENSIVE IRAN SANCTIONS, 
               ACCOUNTABILITY, AND DIVESTMENT ACT OF 2010

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. STEVE ISRAEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 24, 2010

  Mr. ISRAEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Conference Report 
for The Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment 
Act of 2010.
  I can think of nothing more pressing to our national security than 
putting a stop to Iran's nuclear plans. Today, Iran learned that the 
United States Congress will not stop until we end the tyranny Iran's 
leadership is promoting.
  As a member of the House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on 
State and Foreign Operations, I spend a great deal of time focused on 
preventing Iran from developing an enrichment program that leads to 
nuclear weapons. Their current leadership is unstable, provocative, and 
would be a danger to the entire region armed with nuclear weapons.
  Non-military options--including activities to disrupt Iranian 
research--are similarly problematic. This then leads us to consider 
military options. Here, all we need to do is look at Iraq to understand 
the difficulties of a military response in Iran.
  In fact, during an unofficial ``war-game'' on Iran, former National 
Security Council official Ken Pollack said, ``Compared with Iraq, Iran 
has three times the population, four times the land area, and five 
times the problems.''
  Some suggest precision strikes at Iran's nuclear facilities, as the 
Israelis did when they

[[Page E1253]]

successfully destroyed an Iraqi reactor in 1981. But Iran has learned 
from Iraq's mistakes. They have protected their facilities by burying 
them deep underground and dispersing them widely.
  Additionally, virtually every military tool at our disposal--from 
limited and surgical to a major land war aimed at regime change--is 
impacted by one thing: oil. Iran could blockade the Straits of Hormuz 
and choke the supply of oil that is necessary to keep the lights on in 
the Pentagon and the tanks filled in our fighter jets, and double the 
price of fuel in the United States.
  That's why the right set of economic sanctions is so badly needed, 
and why this conference report and the smart, tough sanctions it 
contains, advances our agenda of stopping Iran's quest for nuclear 
weapons.
  This bill toughens penalties for those investing in Iran's energy 
sector and it also includes providing refined petroleum to Iran as a 
sanctionable offense. This bill also requires that any companies that 
want to do business with the U.S. government have to certify that they 
are not engaged in any activities that are considered sanctionable 
regarding Iran.
  I am proud of this bill and what we have achieved as a Congress to 
bring more pressure on Iran.

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