[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 129 (Wednesday, September 9, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H5857-H5858]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           A NUCLEAR-ARMED IRAN IS A THREAT TO EVERY COUNTRY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Costello) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, there is no higher 
priority for this government than of guaranteeing the safety and 
security of the American people. Allowing Iran--the chief sponsor of 
global terror--to obtain nuclear capabilities, which Iran is guaranteed 
to have through this deal, means freedom everywhere is threatened. A 
nuclear-armed Iran is a threat to every country everywhere.
  Mr. Speaker, any deal must be verifiable, enforceable, and 
accountable, and there is nothing verifiable about this deal.
  The secret deals between Iran and the U.N. mean Iranians get to 
certify whether they are complying, and Iran actually provides the 
testing samples to the U.N. for testing. If the U.S. demands the right 
to inspect facilities, Iran can delay for more than 3 weeks. Our 
``anytime, anywhere'' threshold demand has been watered down during 
negotiations to what Iran calls ``managed access.''
  It is not an enforceable deal. Sanctions will have been lifted, and 
it is the sanctions that have forced them to the bargaining table in 
the first instance. Once lifted, Iran will have billions to complete 
their nuclear program and expand their funding of terror. Even if we 
can prove a violation, a slow bureaucratic process gives them time to 
delay, deceive, and deter effective enforcement. There are no snapback 
provisions here, Mr. Speaker, and it is not an accountable deal.

[[Page H5858]]

  Iran is permitted to keep thousands of nuclear centrifuges to enrich 
uranium. As for the $150 billion in unfrozen assets, does anyone think 
that Iran is going to use that to build schools or hospitals or to 
teach tolerance of other faiths? Instead, how about using it to wipe 
Israel off the map? How about the chants of ``death to America''? Why 
are we paving the path to weapons that can accomplish these atrocities?
  Why should we trust Iran? What is it about their history of deceit, 
destruction, and killings that warrants our bestowing trust that they 
will be peaceful?
  Here is a question for those who say this is a good deal: How many 
people can Iran kill with this money for this to remain a good deal? 
What is the under-over death toll threshold for this deal to no longer 
be a good deal?
  I ask these questions because, very simply, this money is going to be 
used to kill people, and this deal provides the funding for it.
  Millions of Americans, throughout the history of this country, have 
fought and died. Families have sacrificed in the name of freedom. 
Generations of Americans have brought about American strength and 
exceptionalism, and this has engendered a belief in our allies that we 
will have their backs, and it has kept many of our enemies in check 
given our military capability. This strength has always been at the 
very core of our leverage when dealing with other countries.
  As for negotiating, the administration simply says we have negotiated 
the best deal we can, and we are supposed to, as Congress, accept that 
at face value with zero input.
  Here is a little bit of recent history. We were assured by this 
administration that al Qaeda had been broken, but it hasn't. Our 
strategy in Yemen was called a model for combating terrorism, but, at 
this point, it looks very much like an Iran proxy state. ISIS was 
mocked as a JV team, and now they are murdering thousands. Our 
relationship with Russia was supposed to be reset, but I don't think 
anyone let Vladimir Putin know that as he invades sovereign countries 
and faces no consequences.

                              {time}  1045

  How about the bright red line in Syria that said we won't allow Assad 
to kill his own people with chemical weapons? This administration 
decided to ignore that, and we now have a Syrian refugee crisis.
  This is the recent backdrop from which our leverage, our American 
strength and exceptionalism, earned through the blood, sweat, and tears 
of generations of Americans, has been brokered by this administration 
in this deal.
  The U.N. voting on this deal before the United States Congress and 
the United States Senate, the minority of which is actually considering 
filibustering a vote on this deal, is an outrage, Mr. Speaker.
  What does a good deal consist of? Real simple: A complete dismantling 
of their entire nuclear program. Once we have a demonstrated proof of 
that, then sanctions get lifted. No nonnuclear concessions.
  Any other outcome is not acceptable. Let's use our leverage to the 
maximum. We fought for it. Let's be strong and let's be proud of our 
strength and let's use it to our advantage.
  Diplomacy isn't compromising to the preferred position of a terrorist 
country. Diplomacy must always begin and end with protecting American 
security.
  This is not about politics, and it is not just about America. A 
nuclear Iran is a global threat to everyone everywhere. All Iranian 
terror must be stopped. We need to reject this deal and go back to the 
negotiating table.

                          ____________________