Source:
Antiwar.com
Rep. Ron Paul
Statement on Mark-up of HR 1905, the Iran Threat Reduction Act of 2011,
House Foreign Affairs Committee
I would like to express my concerns over the Iran Threat
Reduction Act of 2011 and my opposition to it being brought to the Floor
for a vote. Let us be clear on one critical matter: the sanctions
against Iran mandated by this legislation are definite steps toward a US
attack on Iran. They will also, if actually applied, severely disrupt
global trade and undermine the US economy, thereby harming our national
security.
I am surprised and disturbed that the committee viewed this
aggressive legislation to be so bipartisan and uncontroversial that a
recorded vote was not even called.
Some may argue that we are pursuing sanctions so as to avoid
war with Iran, but recent history teaches us otherwise. For how many
years were sanctions placed on Iraq while we were told they were
necessary to avoid war? Thousands of innocent Iraqis suffered and died
under US sanctions and still the US invaded, further destroying the
country. Are we safer after spending a trillion dollars or more to
destroy Iraq and then rebuild it?