[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 188 (Tuesday, November 14, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S5497]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                  IRAN

  Mr. COTTON. Mr. President, since Joe Biden took office, Iran and its 
proxies have attacked American troops in the Middle East at least 135 
times. Let me say that again: 135 attacks on American troops since 
January 2021. What is worse is that 52 of those attacks have happened 
in the last month since Hamas conducted its murderous rampage in its 
ongoing war against Israel. These rocket and drone attacks against 
American bases in Iraq and Syria have caused at least 56 servicemember 
injuries, 25 traumatic brain injuries, and 2 Americans have died 
because of these attacks.
  Just like they have been for years, these attacks are financed by 
Iran, Israel's greatest enemy. These attacks--let's be clear--are meant 
to kill Americans and to increase the conflict and the violence in the 
Middle East.
  So what has President Biden done in response to these attacks? Has he 
punished Iran and its proxies for killing Americans? Has he made it 
clear that the United States will not tolerate these attacks in the 
future? No, not even close.
  Consider the Biden administration has also failed to enforce oil 
sanctions on Iran, giving them over $90 billion, and now President 
Biden is, reportedly, once again, considering the release of the 
remaining $10 billion Iran is owed as part of its hostage exchange. 
What kind of message does it send to the people attacking our troops to 
give them another $10 billion more to fund their activities against the 
United States and Israel?
  In fact, since the terrible atrocity of October 7, Joe Biden has not 
changed his Iran policy in a single way. Of the 135 attacks on 
Americans, the Biden administration has hit back fewer than 10 times. 
Think about that; 135 times they hit us, fewer than 10 times did we hit 
them back. When the attacks against Americans increased in October, 
President Biden didn't even authorize a response for 9 days. It took at 
least 13 attacks on Americans for President Biden to finally react. And 
what did he do? The bare minimum, striking empty weapons storage 
facilities in eastern Syria.
  After these strikes, Secretary Blinken said:

       My warning to the Ayatollah was that if they continue to 
     move against those troops, we will respond, and he should be 
     prepared.

  Well, it is not surprising that shooting a bunch of empty warehouses 
doesn't scare Iran. In fact, it emboldened them in the form of 22 more 
attacks. That is right. Proxies attacked American troops' positions 22 
more times after that initial pathetic response.
  When Secretary Austin announced those strikes, he said:

       The United States does not seek conflict and has no 
     intention nor desire to engage in further hostilities.

  Well, Lloyd Austin and Joe Biden may not seek conflict, but Iran 
does. And it will continue to try to kill our troops until they face 
real consequences, until they are scared straight.
  On Sunday, we finally did hit back again, but, again, we didn't even 
try to hold the real bad guys accountable; instead, the administration, 
once again, shot only at expendable proxies. Iran obviously was not 
deterred by this latest pathetic response. How do we know that? Once 
again, these proxies have committed four more attacks against Americans 
since Sunday.
  Iran has had a proxy strategy for decades. It uses groups like Hamas 
and Hezbollah and militias in Iraq and Syria to deny responsibility for 
its campaign of terror against Israel and the United States. When we 
kill their proxies, all we do is validate their proxy strategy.
  Iran will fight to the last Arab, but Iran will not fight if we hold 
the things at risk that they hold most dear: their shock troops in the 
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, their Quds Force or, if necessary, 
sites and facilities in Iran itself.
  The United States needs Iran to know that we will not tolerate these 
attacks. We need to make sure Iran knows that we will not tolerate 
these attacks and that any attacks by Iran's proxies will be treated as 
an attack by Iran on the United States and be met with devastating 
consequences.
  That is one reason I will be introducing legislation later this week 
that would strengthen sanctions against the Iranian transfer of 
missiles and drone technologies to terrorists and even other nations 
like Russia, which uses them in its war against Ukraine.
  It will also stop Iran from developing the kind of long-range 
missiles that can threaten the U.S. homeland because, again, if we let 
Iran continue to shoot at American troops in the Middle East without 
shooting back at the Iranians who are directing those attacks, what 
will they do if they get their hands on missiles that can target 
America? What will they do if they get their hands on a nuclear weapon?
  It is time, today, to make Iran, once again, fear the United States 
before more Americans die.
  I yield the floor.
  (Mr. REED assumed the Chair.)
  (Ms. SMITH assumed the Chair.)
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Welch). The Senator from Nebraska.

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