By John Gregory/Illinois Radio Network
CHICAGO – While U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) was among the 98 senators who supported a bill allowing Congress to review the final Iran nuclear deal, he does think the legislation is missing something.
The version of the bill passed by the Senate doesn’t include an amendment requiring Iran to recognize Israel as a state for the first time. Kirk wishes that measure had been attached, though it’s unlikely Iran would have agreed to it.
“They’re the only member of the United Nations who talks about constantly wiping another member of the U.N. off the planet,” Kirk said. “That makes the Iranians unique in their hostility to their neighbors.”
Kirk still believes the 98-1 vote in favor of the bill sends a strong message about how the Senate feels about President Obama’s Iran policy.
If enacted, the bill gives Congress 30 days to review any lifting of economic sanctions against Iran, and opens the possibility of federal lawmakers voting to reject the lifting of any congressionally-imposed sanctions.
Kirk still has concerns about what the final deal will look like, mentioning the possibility of a “signing bonus” to Iran worth hundreds of billions of dollars, which he thinks may go to funding terrorism and allow for even greater violations of human rights within the country.
“I’m pretty worried that Iran is building up a record of being the most anti-gay country on the planet. Some experts have told us they’ve executed up to 900 Iranians just for being gay,” Kirk said. “That makes me particularly worried. That is a level of hostility we don’t even see in almost any other country.”
