{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"CD175: State of War","description":"The State Department is known as the agency that solves conflicts with words but a closer look reveals that it\u2019s much more connected to war than most of us think. By examining the State Department\u2019s funding for 2018, discover the State Department\u2019s role in regime changes past, current, and future. In this episode, you\u2019ll also get an introduction to the National Endowment for Democracy, a scandalous organization with a noble sounding name. Mike Glaser joins Jen for the Thank You\u2019s. View the updated Omnibus Please Support Congressional Dish - Quick Links Click here to contribute a lump sum or set up a monthly contribution via PayPal Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Use your bank\u2019s online bill pay function to mail contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North Number 4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Additional Reading Article: It's time for a coup in Venezuela by Jose R. Cardenas, Foreign Policy, June 5, 2018. Opinion: Venezuela needs a new government after rigged election keep socialist criminal Maduro in power by Roger F. Noriega, Fox News, May 23, 2018. Opinion: Venezuela's sham election by The Editorial Board, The New York Times, May 21, 2018. Report: Trump bans purchase of Venezuelan debt in new sanctions by John Paul Rathbone, Financial Times, May 21, 2018. Article and Video: Pompeo vows U.S., Mideast allies will 'crush' Iranian operatives around the world by Carol Morello, The Washington Post, May 21, 2018. Article: Venezuaela's Maduro re-elected amid outcry over vote by Luc Cohen and Andreina Aponte, Reuters, May 20, 2018. Opinion: It's time to hasten Maduro's exit from power by Marco Rubio, CNN, May 16, 2018. Letter: 34 organizations oppose rescission of Complex Crises Fund, FCNL, May 14, 2018. Report: Egypt population surge must be met with job growth, IMF says by Ahmed Feteha, Bloomberg, May 6, 2018. Opinion: A new hope for NGOs in Egypt by Andrew Miller, The Hill, April 23, 2018. Article: John Bolton is cleaning at the National Security Council by Eliza Relman, Business Insider, April 12, 2018. Opinion: The observer view: The west's ill-founded support for Sisi and his brutal regime, The Guardian, April 2, 2018. Article: John ("Bomb Iran") Bolton, the new warmonger in the White House by Robin Wright, The New Yorker, March 23, 2018. Report: State Dept. announces $1B in weapons sales to Saudi Arabia by Ellen Mitchell, The Hill, March 22, 2018. Report: Here's how many Americans don't have access to a 401(k) plan by Emmie Martin, CNBC, March 12, 2018. Report: Egypt's IMF program: Assessing the political economy challenges by Bessma Momani, Brookings, January 30, 2018. Article: Egypt: Time to entrench growth and make it more inclusive, IMF, January 23, 2018. Report: Arab Republic of Egypt : 2017 Article IV Consultation, Second Review Under the Extended Arrangement Under the Extended Fund Facility, and Request for Modification of Performance Criteria-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for the Arab Republic of Egypt, International Monetary Fund, January 22, 2018. Article: Beyond the Iran nuclear deal by John Bolton, WSJ, January 15, 2018. Article: Allison's goal: Keep Summit Point humming by Tim Cook, The Journal, December 11, 2017. Interview: An interview with Carl Gershman '65, President of the National Endowment for Democracy by Adrianne Owings, The Politic, November 20, 2017. Working Paper: Household wealth trends in the United States, 1962 to 2016: Has middle class wealth recovered? by Edward N. Wolff, The National Bureau of Economic Research, November 2017. Article: Millions of Americans are left out of the stock market boom by Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN Money, October 20, 2017. Article: Egypt's Sisi meets Kushner after U.S. holds back aid by Ahmed Aboulenein, Reuters, August 23, 2017. Article\/Video: Trump alarms Venezuela with talk of a 'military option' by The New York Times, August 12, 2017. Article: Why is Egypt's new NGO law controversial? by Farah Najjar, Aljazeera, May 31, 2017. Video: Construction progress on the new Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (FASTC), U.S. Department of State, April 1, 2017. Article: An actual American war criminal may become our second-ranking diplomat by Eric Alterman, The Nation, February 2, 2017. Report: National Endowment for Democracy is first 'undesirable' NGO banned in Russia by Alec Luhn, The Guardian, July 28, 2015. Article: Did State Dept. mislead Congress about findings in an OMB report? This lawmaker says so. by Colby Itkowitz, The Washington Post, May 12, 2015. Report: Two years after Benghazi, State battles lawmakers over training site for agents by Ben Kamisar, The Hill, April 12, 2015. Article: To stop Iran's bomb, bomb Iran by John R. Bolton, The New York Times, March 26, 2015. Article: Price to avoid another Benghazi? House leaders question $461 million training center by Josh Siegel, The Daily Signal, June 25, 2014. Report: CIA admits role in 1953 Iranian coup by Saeed Kamali and Richard Norton-Taylor, The Guardian, August 19, 2013. Article: Egyptian military ousts Morsi, suspends constitution by Abigail Hauslohner, William Booth, and Sharaf al-Hourani, The Washington Post, July 3, 2013. Report: McCain's rules on lobbying face test by Matthew Mosk and Jeffrey H. Bimbaum, The Washington Post, May 23, 2008. Article: Bush aims to raise whose budget? by Brendan Koerner, Slate, January 22, 2004. Article: The networks of "democratic" interference by Thierry Meyssan, Voltairenet, January 22, 2004. Article: Venezuala coup linked to Bush team by Ed Vulliamy, The Guardian, April 21, 2002. Article: Venezuela gets big I.M.F credit, backing market reforms by Paul Lewis, The New York Times, July 13, 1996. Resources Archive.org: National Endowment for Democracy: Form 990 (2002-2015) Campaign Contributions: Maurice Tempelsman Political Campaign Contributions 2016 Election Cycle Congressional Research Service: State, Foreign Operations Appropriations: A Guide to Component Accounts Energy Report: BP Statistical Review of World Energy June 2017 Friends Committee on National Legislation: The Complex Crisis Fund International Republican Institute: Board of Directors International Republican Institute: FAQs LinkedIn Profile: Alison Fortier LinkedIn Profile: Judy Black National Democratic Institute: Board of Directors National Democratic Institute: FAQs National Endowment for Democracy: History National Endowment for Democracy: William Blum Paladin Capital Group Info: Michael Steed Publication: Journal of Democracy USAid: Office of Program, Policy, and Management U.S. Department of State: Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (FASTC) U.S. Government Accountability Office: Retirement Security Reports Website: National Endowment for Democracy Sound Clip Sources Testimony: State Department Fiscal Year 2019 Budget Request, Foreign Affairs Committee, C-SPAN, May 23, 2018. 5:32 Chairman Ed Royce (CA): The National Endowment for Democracy in particular should be strongly supported. Let\u2019s face it: democracy is on the ropes worldwide; supporting it is a moral and strategic good. NED is backing critical programming in Venezuela and Nigeria and worldwide. It is no time to cut this programming. 6:00 Chairman Ed Royce (CA): The administration has rightly provided lethal arms to Ukraine, which remains under siege by Russian proxies. 6:16 Chairman Ed Royce (CA): A far more severe threat is Moscow\u2019s information war. This committee has heard that Moscow\u2019s goal isn\u2019t so much to make Western citizens think this or think that; Russia\u2019s goal is to destroy all confidence in objective thought. By undermining fact-based discussions with lies, our enemies hope to gravely damage Western democracies. The State Department must aggressively counter disinformation through its global engagement center, other means, and with department officials speaking out for the truth. 18:05 Mike Pompeo: On Monday I unveiled a new direction for the president\u2019s Iran strategy. We will apply unprecedented financial pressure; coordinate with our DOD colleagues on deterrents efforts; support the Iranian people, perhaps most importantly; and hold out the prospect for a new deal with Iran. It simply needs to change its behavior. 19:40 Mike Pompeo: This budget request seeks $2.2 billion to help stimulate American economic growth by expanding markets for U.S. investment and ensuring the partner countries can fully participate in the global economy. 19:55 Mike Pompeo: America\u2019s message, a noble one, must be shared with the world at all times. Gentleman Royce, you mentioned the global engagement center. We will work with the 55-plus-million dollars available to cover both its original mission, counter extremism, plus countering state-sponsored disinformation campaigns. We will not tolerate Russian interference in our 2018 elections. Much work has been done; there\u2019s more to do. Rest assured that we will take the appropriate countermeasures in response to the continued Russian efforts. 35:05 Mike Pompeo: First, with respect to Venezuela, we did this morning receive a formal notification that our charged affairs had been PNG\u2019d. We will respond appropriately, certainly reciprocally, but perhaps more than that. Perhaps proportionately. We understand that there\u2019s a second U.S. officer who will also be PNG\u2019d. We\u2019re well aware. We\u2019re watching the Maduro regime continue to engage in destructive behavior for the Venezuelan people. 1:44:35 Paul Rep. Cook (CA): Foreign military sales. A number of the countries are concerned. Peru is\u2014 Mike Pompeo: Mm-hmm. Rep. Cook: \u2014I think they\u2019re putting in a plug for the C-130Js. Very, very interested. And so I obviously am very, very concerned. Before, in the past, we\u2019re much more involved in that. And as I said, there\u2019s a lot of countries, most notably China and Iran, that are involved in that. What can we do to increase foreign military sales in that region? Pompeo: I, for one, would advocate for working closely with them and encouraging them to purchase U.S. equipment that fit their country, that was the right tool set for them, for themselves and their security interests. I hope that we can, across the board, streamline the State Department\u2019s process connected with foreign military sales. There\u2019s work to do. Rep. Cook: And I brought up this subject before in regards to NATO. You know, Eastern Europe, they\u2019re still reliant on the parts from Russia. Once you go with another country, you\u2019re going to be dependent on that. So, I think we\u2019ve got to look at that whole situation, or once they buy, they\u2019re going to be buying there for the next five generations or something. Pompeo: Yes, sir. Rep. Cook: Thank you very much. I yield back. 1:54:17 Rep. Scott Perry (PA): And in Bosnia, I\u2019m concerned that there\u2019s an October election and there\u2019s a problem with the constitution. The date and accords were never supposed to last 20 years. They have. But I\u2019m concerned that we\u2019re not headed in the right place there. And I just want to get your thoughts on that, if we\u2019re going to wait to see what happens, if we\u2019re going to take preemptive action. I would hate to see that thing burn down and then\u2014with the United States having troops on the ground there to try and secure the peace, and also if we\u2019re interested in pursuing putting some forces there, again, to thwart Russia, and if that\u2019s a consideration. So, those two topics, sir. Mike Pompeo: So, let me start first with Bosnia. We\u2019re working on the very issue you described. I can\u2019t say a lot about it, but know that the State Department, others, Department of Defense are there. We understand the risk. We think the region\u2019s very important. We know the\u2014and this transitions to your second part of the question which is, we know the Russians are hard at work there destabilizing\u2014 Rep. Perry: As are the Turks, right? Pompeo: Yes. And so there are a handful, although admittedly not sufficiently sized levers currently being employed, and we\u2019re working to develop a strategy that puts us in a better place. 1:55:35 Rep. Scott Perry (PA): Mr. Secretary, this is a picture\u2014I\u2019m sure you\u2019re well aware\u2014of an M1 tank manufactured right here in the United States, paid for by the citizens of the United States, with their taxes. That is a Hezbollah flag on it. I am concerned and have written letters regarding the Train and Equip Program in Iraq and the Shia Crescent and the land bridges they\u2019re building across Iraq with the militias there again. Many of the Iranian people want freedom, they want peace, and the don\u2019t agree with the regime that they\u2019re working\u2014living under. But I offered amendments in the NDAA to stop the funding and the Train and Equip Program. One was found in favor; one was not. So we leave it up to you. I want to make sure that you\u2019re aware that this is happening, including militias like Kata\u2019ib Hezbollah, listed as a terrorist organization for killing American soldiers. And if the Congress is unwilling to stop it, I hope you will be willing to stop the funding and the Train and Equip Program in Iraq and funding the Iranian militias that are willing to kill Americans and Jews and everybody across the Crescent that disagrees with them. Mike Pompeo: I\u2019ll say this: it is the case that when we perform Train and Equip functions from time to time, equipment ends up in the hands of the wrong people. It\u2019s a risk inherent in those operations. The question becomes, is the value we\u2019re getting from that training, those exercises, outweigh the risk that that happens? You should know that the U.S. government works diligently to put rules and processes in place to make that picture, or pictures like that, as infrequent as possible. Rep. Perry: I don\u2019t think the Iraqis are complying. 2:03:45 Rep. Ron DeSantis (FL): In terms of what\u2019s going on in Venezuela, there\u2019s a pretty significant Cuban presence of military intelligence. Is that your estimation? Mike Pompeo: I\u2019m sorry. Could you repeat the question? Rep. DeSantis: In terms of the situation in Venezuela, propping up the Maduro regime, is part of that the Cuban military and intelligence apparatus? Pompeo: In this setting I can say there are a great deal of Cuban influence that is working alongside the Maduro regime. Rep. DeSantis: And it\u2019s not helpful to what America wants. Pompeo: It runs adverse to U.S. interests, directly adverse to U.S. interests. 2:05:42 Rep. Ron DeSantis (FL): The Iranian people, obviously, are not happy with this regime. I mean, this is a militant, Islamic regime that\u2019s been really imposed on relatively pro-Western populous, educated middle class. We see the protests. The president has spoken out, I think correctly. What can we do to help, because it seems like the regime cracks down on the social networks, they don\u2019t want there to be a free flow of information, but I think it\u2019s certainly in our interests to empower people who view this regime as illegitimate and not representative of their ideals. Mike Pompeo: It\u2019s long been U.S. deeply held position that we will do the things we can to ensure that peoples all around the world have their human rights, their political rights, their capacity to express themselves. We shouldn\u2019t shy away from that with respect to Iran, either. There are a number of tools that we can use, some of which I\u2019m now responsible for their implementation; others exist other places in government. We should bring them all to bear to allow the Iranian people to be governed by the leaders that they choose. 2:59:44 Rep. Ted Lieu (CA): I\u2019d like to ask you now about Yemen. As you know, the war in Yemen is now the world\u2019s worst humanitarian disaster. Over 22 million people are now at risk of starvation, 8 million don\u2019t know where their next meal will be, and every 10 minutes a child dies of preventable causes. So the U.S. is involved in Yemen in two ways. One is we are striking terrorists. Now, I don\u2019t have a problem with that. But the other way we\u2019re involved is we are assisting the Saudi-led military coalition. And again, I don\u2019t have a problem with assisting our allies, but I do have a problem when that coalition is killing large numbers of civilians through airstrikes that are nowhere near military targets. And as of last September, more than 5,000 civilians have been killed, the majority from these airstrikes. In 2016 the State Department, its lawyers, have wrote a memo saying that because we\u2019re refueling these planes, the Saudi jets, and also providing them other assistance, that U.S. personnel could be considered a co-belligerent and liable for war crimes. I know you just came on as secretary of state. Wonder if you\u2019ve had a chance yet to read that memo. Mike Pompeo: I have not. Rep. Lieu: At your convenience. Pompeo: But I will. I will review the memo. Rep. Lieu: Thank you. I appreciate that. And if you could also make a request to your state department to see if members of Congress could also review that memo in a classified setting as well, that\u2019d be appreciated. Pompeo: Have you\u2014You\u2019ve not had a\u2014I take it you\u2019ve not had a chance to see it. Rep. Lieu: We have not. Pompeo: Yes, sir. Rep. Lieu: So if you could make that request, that\u2019d be great. Pompeo: I will review that, absolutely. Rep. Lieu: Thank you. So, when this conflict first started, we had all these airstrikes from Saudi-led coalition, and what it turned out is that it\u2019s not that they were trying to hit a Houthi vehicle that was moving and they missed and struck a bunch of civilians; what ended up happening is they intentionally struck those civilian targets. So they struck hospitals, weddings, schools, markets, and last year they struck a funeral, that killed hundreds of people, twice. So they hit this funeral, and the jets went around and hit it again a second time. Very precise. That\u2019s why the Obama administration actually stopped a shipment of precision-guided munitions because they realized actually these jets are intending to strike their targets and they were civilians. It\u2019s my understanding that the Trump administration is now going to go forward with that sale. Just wondering why do you think anything has changed in Yemen that would authorize this sale to go forward? Mike Pompeo: So, I\u2019m cursorily familiar with the incidents you\u2019re describing. There are a very rigid set of rules that are thought deeply about in every national security agency that I\u2019ve been part of\u2014at the CIA before, now at State Department\u2014with respect to providing munitions to organizations that are intentionally engaging in civilian targeting. We have a complex set of rules and prohibitions. We would never do that. It is this administration\u2019s judgment that providing the precision-guided munitions actually decreases the risk to civilians. And it\u2019s for that reason we think this actually makes sense, certainly for our allies and partners but also for citizens that are engaged in ordinary activity inside of Yemen. And if I might, this administration\u2019s also taken serious action to do our best to reduce the humanitarian crisis that is Yemen as well. We\u2019ve not resolved it, but we\u2019ve made real progress. Rep. Lieu: Thank you. News Interview: Bolton: 'Our goal should be regime change in Iran', Fox News, January 1, 2018. Video: 2004 State of the Union Address , C-SPAN, January 20, 2004. Congress: Ron Paul: War with Iran has already been decided by the Financial Elite, C-SPAN, January 3, 2012. 1:40:39* Senator Rand Paul (KY): I think many people would admit that the Iran agreement had some deficiencies. One of the largest deficiencies might have been that the $100 billion was released all at once instead of maybe gradually to help modulate behavior over a longer period of time. That being said, the $100 billion that was released was a great inducement to get Iran to sign the agreement. That was a carrot, and that carrot\u2019s gone. They\u2019ve gotten the good thing, and now we want compliance, and now we\u2019re pulling out. And so the question is, what are the next inducements to get them to sign things, or will there not be? I think there\u2019s a question with\u2014there are two possibilities, basically, of what will happen. So you reintroduce the strongest sanctions ever. They either don\u2019t work\u2014that\u2019s one possibility\u2014because they\u2019re unilateral, and some say unilateral sanctions won\u2019t work. Let\u2019s say they don\u2019t work. That means Europe, China, and Russia continue to trade with them, and Iran says, \u201cWell, they\u2019re going to continue to trade with us. We\u2019ll just keep abiding by the agreement.\u201d They don\u2019t develop any more nuclear weapons or technology towards that, but they don\u2019t do anything else that you would like\u2014ballistic missiles, less terrorism. So, really, basically, we don\u2019t get what we want if the sanctions don\u2019t work. Second possibility. Let\u2019s say the sanctions do work. We have enough manipulation of money that flows through us from Europe. Europe does a lot of trade with us. Europe buckles. I think Russia and China still will trade with them, but let\u2019s say Europe buckles. And let\u2019s say it works, and it puts enough pressure on Iran, then there are two possibilities of what Iran does. The first possibility is they say, \u201cOh, Secretary Pompeo. We love Secretary Pompeo\u2019s 12-point strategy, and we\u2019re going to accept that.\u201d I think that\u2019s unlikely. The second possibility, if the sanctions work and they put enough pressure on them\u2014Iran feels the pressure\u2014is that they restart their nuclear centrifuge program. So those are two possibilities. But what I\u2019d like to do is go through the 12 steps that you\u2019d like Iran to do and sort of explore what these would mean if we thought about them in terms of bigger than Iran. So one of your first things is\u2014and this came up during JCPOA, but nobody really could really get this done\u2014you want Iran to reveal the military dimensions of its nuclear program. Well, let\u2019s substitute Israel for Iran there. Does anybody think Israel\u2019s going to reveal the military dimensions of their nuclear program? Well, you\u2019ll say, \u201cWell, they\u2019re our friend.\u201d Well, yeah, but from Iran\u2019s perspective they see Israel as a rival and a regional rival. Let\u2019s put Saudi Arabia in there. Well, Saudi Arabia revealed the military dimensions of its nuclear program. Well, some might say, \u201cMm, they don\u2019t really have it.\u201d But I\u2019m guessing there are files over at the CIA that say, \u201cWell, you know what? They have talked to people about purchasing it. Some say they have purchased nuclear technology.\u201d I can guarantee we know that, and you probably can\u2019t admit it, but let\u2019s put Saudi Arabia in there. Are they willing to discuss anything they have done to develop nuclear weapons? So really what you\u2019re asking for is something that they are never going to agree to. Okay? You can try to crip them. It\u2019s sort of like unconditional surrender. You\u2019re not getting that. Let\u2019s move on. Proliferation of ballistic missiles. I don\u2019t like them threatening surrounding countries or us with ballistic missiles. Nobody does. But they respond not just to us; they respond to Saudi Arabia. There\u2019s a 1,000-year-old war over there. There\u2019s a 1,000-year-old religious war over there, and there\u2019s hostility between the two. So when we supply weapons and the Saudis buy ballistic missiles\u2014the Saudis have a ballistic program\u2014they respond to that. The Saudis and their allies, the Gulf sheikhdom, spend eight times more than Iran. So when you tell Iran, \u201cOh, well, you have to give up your ballistic-missile program,\u201d but you don\u2019t say anything to the Saudis, you think they\u2019re ever going to sign that? They would have to be crippled and starving people in the streets for them ever to agree to give up their ballistic-missile program. Had we kept the Iran agreement with them and you said to the Iranians, \u201cWell, we want less of an arms race over there. We\u2019d like to have peace with Saudi Arabia. Could we get Saudi Arabia to the table, with Iran, to discuss either a freeze of ballistic missiles\u2014\u201d you know, when we went to Russia, we didn\u2019t just succumb and say we\u2019d give up our weapons. Neither did Russia. We did it in parity. We had an agreement. If you leave Saudi Arabia out of it and you leave Israel out of it and you look at Iran in isolation, that\u2019s not the way they perceive it. So, don\u2019t think they\u2019re going to jump at your 12 notions here of what you\u2019d like them to do. Mike Pompeo: Senator, may I make this one point? Paul: Go ahead. Pompeo: I think the example of Saudi Arabia\u2019s a reasonable one. We have told the Saudis exactly what I asked from the Iranians. Paul: To talk about their nuclear program? Pompeo: They have said they want a peaceful nuclear-energy program, and we have told them we want a gold-standard, Section 123 agreement from them, which would not permit them to enrich. That is simply all I\u2019ve asked of Iran as well. Paul: Do we have information that the Saudis have talked to actors in Pakistan and other places about purchasing nuclear technology? Pompeo: Sir, I can\u2019t answer that here this morning. Paul: Which is to say we, in all likelihood, do have that information. And so the thing is it\u2019s a one-way playing field. Unless we understand that there are two big players over there\u2014really, three big players: you got Iran, you got Israel, and you got Saudi Arabia\u2014we want Iran to do things we\u2019re not willing to ask anybody else to do and that we would never do. So\u2014 Pompeo: Senator, I disagree with you. I think we ask most nations to do precisely what we\u2019re asking Iran to do. Paul: Let\u2019s move on to another one of your 12 points and the military support for the Houthi rebels. Well, once again, you\u2019re asking them to end it, but you\u2019re not asking the Saudis to end their bombardment of Yemen. I mean, if you look at the humanitarian disaster that is Yemen, it is squarely on the shoulders of the Saudis. And so we\u2019re going to ask the Iranians to quit supplying\u2014they, in all likelihood, are the ones supplying the missiles\u2014and we get reports, and the Defense Department comes and says, \u201cThere\u2019ve been 32 missiles strikes in Saudi Arabia.\u201d Well, there\u2019s been, like, 16,000 bombings of Yemen by Saudi Arabia. Nobody even mentions that. We act as if it didn\u2019t even happen. If we are so ignorant that there\u2019re two sides to this war, we\u2019re never getting anywhere. Iran\u2019s not going to stop doing that, but they might if you sat them down with the Saudi Arabians, said, \u201cThis arms race doesn\u2019t make sense,\u201d and Saudi Arabia\u2019s willing to sit down at the table. You know, is Saudi Arabia willing to stop, another one\u2019s withdrawal all forces under Iran\u2019s command throughout the entirety of Syria? There were dozens of groups in there, even ISIS, that were getting weapons from Qatar and Saudi Arabia. In fact, one of the leaked emails from WikiLeaks was from Clinton to Podesta, saying, \u201cMy goodness. We\u2019ve got to stop Saudi Arabia and Qatar from funding ISIS.\u201d That\u2019s a direct email. They were acknowledging they knew about it, and they were acknowledging it was a problem, but weapons were flowing in to all kinds of radicals in there. So if you want Iran to stop\u2014and I mean, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are 10 times the problem, you know? The whole Syrian war has all of these radical jihadists. The people who attacked us came from Saudi Arabia. We ignore all that, and we lavish them with more bombs. So, really, until we acknowledge there are two sides to the war\u2014or three sides to the war in the Middle East\u2014you\u2019re not going to get the agreement. I think it was na\u00efve to pull out of the Iran agreement, and I think in the end, we\u2019ll be worse off for it. United Nations Address: Jon Bolton U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., June 18, 2006. Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations Music Presented in This Episode Intro & Exit: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito (found on Music Alley by mevio)   ","author_name":"Congressional Dish","author_url":"https:\/\/congressionaldish.com","html":"