May, 17 2017, 12:00pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Email:,mmostatabi@niacouncil.org
NIAC Responds to President Trump's Renewal of Sanction Waivers for Iran
Trita Parsi, President of the National Iranian American Council, issued the following statement regarding the President's expected renewal of sanctions waivers pursuant to U.S. obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA):
"We welcome President Trump's decision to adhere to the obligations of the U.S. under the JCPOA and waive nuclear-related sanctions with Iran, but we remain concerned about the Trump administration's commitment to the nuclear deal.
WASHINGTON
Trita Parsi, President of the National Iranian American Council, issued the following statement regarding the President's expected renewal of sanctions waivers pursuant to U.S. obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA):
"We welcome President Trump's decision to adhere to the obligations of the U.S. under the JCPOA and waive nuclear-related sanctions with Iran, but we remain concerned about the Trump administration's commitment to the nuclear deal.
"In renewing waivers of U.S. sanctions, the Trump administration is once again grudgingly acknowledging that Iran continues to abide by its obligations under the agreement. Yet, the administration continues to stand in the way of what is legitimate trade with Iran, which the agreement obligates the United States not to do.
"It is also crucial that the administration cease questioning the integrity of a deal that according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and our European allies is working.
"Trump's constant incendiary remarks about the JCPOA are not exclusively political pandering to Washington hawks and the Saudi monarchs he will soon visit. It sends dangerous signals that undercut U.S. reliability and global leadership. It has already had a chilling effect on the sanctions relief promised under the deal, as banks and companies fear the U.S. will break its promises. And Trump's threats give hardliners in Iran an upper hand to push for a more confrontational policy, while undermining moderates and reformists who have sought greater engagement with the West.
"To the extent that the administration has a strategy, it appears to be to kill the nuclear deal without giving the appearance of violating it. Reissuing the waivers gives the appearance of compliance, while the uncertainty created by the administration's attacks on the deal can be enough to cause its collapse and put the U.S. and Iran back on a path towards war.
"It is undeniable that the deal is in America's national interest as it has blocked all of Iran's pathways to a nuclear bomb. The Trump administration should not only renew the waivers, it should completely adhere to the deal and ensure that all parties benefit from being in compliance. The longer the deal lasts, the better off the United States will be."
The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization founded in 2002 to give voice to the Iranian-American community. From being the trusted voice on U.S.- Iran relations, to pushing forth legislation that protects individuals of Iranian heritage from systematic discrimination, to celebrating our cultural heritage, NIAC creates a lasting impact in the lives of the members of our community.
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Once Again, Tom Cotton Blocks Bill to Shield Journalists From Betraying Sources
Responding to the GOP senator's latest thwarting of the PRESS Act, Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden vowed to "keep trying to get this bill across the finish line" before Republicans take control of the Senate next month.
Dec 10, 2024
Republican U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas on Tuesday again blocked the passage of House-approved bipartisan legislation meant to shield journalists and telecommunications companies from being compelled to disclose sources and other information to federal authorities.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) brought the Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying (PRESS) Act—which would prohibit the federal government from forcing journalists and telecom companies to disclose certain information, with exceptions for terroristic or violent threats—for a unanimous consent vote.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) argued Tuesday that passing the PRESS Act is "more important now than ever before when we've heard some in the previous administration talk about going after the press in one way or another," a reference to Republican President-elect Donald Trump's threats to jail journalists who refuse to reveal the sources of leaks. Trump, who has referred to the press as the "enemy of the people," repeatedly urged Senate Republicans to "kill this bill."
Cotton, who blocked a vote on the legislation in December 2022, again objected to the bill, a move that thwarted its speedy passage. The Republican called the legislation a "threat to national security" and "the biggest giveaway to the liberal press in American history."
The advocacy group Defending Rights and Dissent lamented that "Congress has abdicated their responsibility to take substantive steps to protect the constitutional right to a free press."
However, Seth Stern, director of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, noted ways in which Senate Democrats can still pass the PRESS Act before Republicans gain control of the upper chamber next month:
Senate Democrats had all year to move this bipartisan bill and now time is running out. Leader Schumer needs to get the PRESS Act into law—whether by attaching it to a year-end legislative package or bringing it to the floor on its own—even if it means shortening lawmakers' holiday break. Hopefully, today was a preview of more meaningful action to come.
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Some advocates specifically praised Khan—a progressive FTC chair whom President-elect Donald Trumpplans to replace with Andrew Ferguson, a current commissioner who previously worked as chief counsel to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and as Republican counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
"Today's decision is a major win for shoppers and grocery workers. Families have been paying the price of unchecked corporate power in the food and grocery sector, and further consolidation would only worsen this crisis," declared Groundwork Collaborative executive director Lindsay Owens in a statement.
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LGBTQ+ and voting rights defenders were among those who sounded the alarm Tuesday over Republican President-elect Donald Trump's selection of a San Francisco attorney known for fighting against transgender rights and for leading a right-wing lawyers' group that took part in Trump's effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election to oversee the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.
On Monday, Trump announced his nomination of Harmeet Dhillon to head the key civil rights office, claiming on his Truth Social network that the former California Republican Party vice-chair "has stood up consistently to protect our cherished Civil Liberties, including taking on Big Tech for censoring our Free Speech, representing Christians who were prevented from praying together during COVID, and suing corporations who use woke policies to discriminate against their workers."
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Trump has picked Harmeet Dhillon as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. She has stated that it must be "made unsafe" for hospitals to provide trans care, and frequently shares Libs of TikTok posts. She intends to target trans people in blue states. Subscribe to support my journalism.
[image or embed]
— Erin Reed (@erininthemorning.com) December 10, 2024 at 8:14 AM
Reed continued:
Dhillon's most prominent work includes founding the Center for American Liberty, a legal organization that focuses heavily on anti-transgender cases in blue states. The organization's "featured cases" section highlights several lawsuits, such as Chloe Cole's case against Kaiser Permanente; a lawsuit challenging a Colorado school's use of a transgender student's preferred name; a case against a California school district seeking to implement policies that would forcibly out transgender students; and a lawsuit against Vermont for denying a foster care license to a family unwilling to comply with nondiscrimination policies regarding transgender youth.
Reed also highlighted Dhillon's attacks on state laws protecting transgender people, as well as her expression of "extreme anti-trans views" on social media—including calling gender-affirming healthcare for trans children "child abuse."
Last year, The Guardian's Jason Wilson reported that the Center for American Liberty made a six-figure payment to a public relations firm that represented Dhillion in both "her capacity as head of her own for-profit law firm and Republican activist."
Writing for the voting rights platform Democracy Docket, Matt Cohen on Tuesday accused Dhillon of being "one of the leading legal figures working to roll back voting rights across the country."
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As Maya Wiley, president and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said in a statement Tuesday, "The Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has the critical responsibility of enforcing our nation's federal civil rights laws and ensuring equal justice under the law on behalf of all of our communities."
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She was co-chair of the Republican National Lawyers Association when it launched Lawyers for Trump, a group that urged the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene on behalf of the former president after he lost the 2020 election.
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