One GOP senator isn’t satisfied with the existing explanation for the United States’ deal with Iran that resulted in the release of several prisoners in January. Oklahoma Senator James Lankford said he plans to write President Obama and demand he reveal the details to provide transparency to the American public, as reported by The Hill.
Lankford’s declaration comes after The Wall Street Journal reported how the Obama administration sent an additional $1.3 billion in cash to Iran. It was originally believed and confirmed by the State Department that the Iran deal was just for $400 million. The State Department has said the overall $1.7 billion deal was related to an old arms deal the two countries made decades ago. But Lakford said he is not happy with that simple explanation, and he wants to know why it was a cash deal and if there have been any “direct or indirect payments” with Iran since mid 2015. Lankford says the American public wants to learn about the extent of the U.S. and Iran relationship:
“The American people rightfully have questions about how this transfer took place and deserve to know the full extent of the relationship between the U.S. and Iran. The American people should know how their hard earned tax dollars were spent and the details of the agreements that were made on their behalf … Every American’s signature was implicitly placed on that agreement by your administration, so every American should have access to the facts of the agreement.”
Several Republicans have reportedly asked President Obama to provide more details about the deal, but the administration has been mum for the most part, only confirming they made the deal.
(Via The Hill & The Wall Street Journal)
