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For
Immediate
Release
December
21,
2017
|
Contact:
James
Wegmann
(202)
224-4224
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|
Sasse
Seeks
Answers
on
Hezbollah
Report
"The
American
people
deserve
answers
to
these
disturbing
allegations."
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
U.S.
Senator
Ben
Sasse,
a
member
of
the
Senate
Judiciary
and
Banking
Committees,
pressed
the
Justice,
Treasury,
and
State
Departments
for
answers
on
the
Obama
administration's
handling
of
Hezbollah.
According
to
a
recent
investigative
report,
the
Obama
administration's
pursuit
of
a
nuclear
deal
with
Iran
led
to
a
"systematic"
effort
to
“defang,
defund
and
undermine”
federal
work
to
disrupt
Hezbollah’s
extensive
criminal
activity.
"If
the
Obama
administration
failed
to
use
the
authorities
that
Congress
has
authorized
to
stop
Hezbollah
terrorists
and
their
associates
from
pouring
cocaine
onto
our
streets
to
fund
terrorism
and
acquire
weapons
of
mass
destruction,
it
was
a
colossal
mistake,"
said
Sasse.
"If
the
administration
did
so
in
order
to
shore
up
its
foolish
nuclear
deal
with
Iran,
it
was
a
mistake
of
historical
proportions,
a
mistake
the
consequences
of
which
reach
from
the
battlefields
of
Syria
to
the
streets
of
Omaha
and
Scottsbluff."
The
full
text
of
Sasse's
letter
is
available
here:
Dear
Attorney
General
Sessions
and
Secretaries
Mnuchin
and
Tillerson,
I
write
to
you
today
out
of
serious
concern
over
the
federal
government’s
failure
to
address
the
threats
posed
by
Hezbollah.
As
you
are
well
aware,
this
group
has
evolved
significantly
over
the
years
since
gaining
notoriety
for
its
terrorist
activities
in
Lebanon,
Israel,
and
Syria.
In
recent
years,
public
reports
indicate
that
it
has
expanded
its
operations
as
a
transnational
criminal
enterprise
engaged
in
a
variety
of
illicit
activities
across
a
number
of
continents.
These
activities
appear
to
run
the
gamut
from
drug
running
to
diamond
smuggling
to
trafficking
components
for
the
production
and
delivery
of
weapons
of
mass
destruction.
Any
major
criminal
network
engaged
in
these
activities
should
warrant
significant
attention
from
our
law
enforcement
and
national
security
authorities,
and
Hezbollah’s
status
as
a
radical
Islamic
terrorist
organization
and
its
significant
ties
to
rogue
regimes
such
as
Iran
and
Syria
should
make
it
all
the
more
concerning.
It
is
precisely
because
Hezbollah
presents
such
a
disturbing
reach
and
array
of
illicit
capabilities
that
recent
disclosures
about
the
previous
administration’s
handling
of
the
group
prove
so
disturbing.
According
a
recent
investigative
report,
the
Obama
administration
engaged
in
a
“systematic”
effort
to
“defang,
defund
and
undermine”
efforts
across
the
Justice,
Treasury,
and
State
Departments
to
employ
prosecutorial,
financial,
and
diplomatic
authorities
to
disrupt
Hezbollah’s
extensive
criminal
activity,
in
the
words
of
one
former
official.
The
goal
of
the
administration’s
efforts
directed
“from
the
top
down”
was—according
to
the
report
and
the
public
statements
of
multiple
former
officials—unambiguously
clear:
“These
investigations
were
tamped
down
for
fear
of
rocking
the
boat
with
Iran
and
jeopardizing
the
nuclear
deal.”
If
the
Obama
administration
failed
to
use
the
authorities
that
Congress
has
authorized
to
stop
Hezbollah
terrorists
and
their
associates
from
pouring
cocaine
onto
our
streets
to
fund
terrorism
and
acquire
weapons
of
mass
destruction,
it
was
a
colossal
mistake.
If
the
administration
did
so
in
order
to
shore
up
its
foolish
nuclear
deal
with
Iran,
it
was
a
mistake
of
historical
proportions,
a
mistake
the
consequences
of
which
reach
from
the
battlefields
of
Syria
to
the
streets
of
Omaha
and
Scottsbluff.
The
American
people
deserve
answers
to
these
disturbing
allegations.
As
such,
please
respond
the
following
questions
and
requests:
- How
many
prosecutions
and
extradition
requests
of
individuals
with
known
or
suspected
ties
to
Hezbollah
or
associated
entities
were
declined
from
2009–17?
- Please
provide
any
document
in
your
possession
that
refers
to
a
specific
potential
prosecutorial,
financial,
or
diplomatic
action
that
was
considered
but
not
taken
against
Hezbollah,
its
members,
associates,
or
related
entity
for
criminal
activity
from
2009–17.
- Please
provide
any
document
in
your
possession
that
mentions
both
possible
prosecutorial,
financial,
or
diplomatic
actions
against
Hezbollah,
its
members,
associates,
or
related
entities
and
the
Joint
Comprehensive
Plan
of
Action
or
U.S.-Iran
relations
generally.
- Can
you
provide
a
minimum
estimate
for
the
amount
of
controlled
substances
trafficked
into
the
United
States
because
of
these
declined
prosecutions
and
any
other
policy
decisions
made
to
promote
the
Joint
Comprehensive
Plan
of
Action
or
U.S.-Iran
relations
generally?
- Can
you
provide
a
minimum
estimate
of
the
amount
of
money
laundered
by
Hezbollah,
its
members,
associates,
and
related
entities
because
of
these
declined
prosecutions
and
any
other
policy
decisions
made
to
promote
the
Joint
Comprehensive
Plan
of
Action
or
U.S.-Iran
relations
generally?
- What
evolutionary
developments
of
Hezbollah’s
criminal
enterprise
have
occurred
because
of
these
declined
prosecutions
and
any
other
policy
decisions
made
to
promote
the
Joint
Comprehensive
Plan
of
Action
or
the
U.S.-Iran
relationship
generally?
- Have
the
unclassified
reports
and
classified
annexes
on
narcotics
trafficking
and
significant
transnational
criminal
activity
by
Hezbollah
required
by
Sections
201
and
202
of
Public
Law
114-102
been
provided
to
Congress?
- If
so,
were
they
provided
on
or
before
the
statutory
deadline?
- If
so,
please
enclose
a
copy
of
the
report
with
your
response.
- If
not,
will
the
administration
commit
to
complying
with
this
statutory
requirement
within
30
days?
Please
provide
your
responses
in
writing
within
30
days.
If
you
have
any
questions
or
concerns
concerning
the
content
or
scope
of
these
questions
and
requests,
please
contact
my
staff
at
(202)
224-4224.
I
understand
that
these
questions
likely
involve
significant
amounts
of
classified
and
law
enforcement-sensitive
information,
and
I
am
eager
to
work
with
you
to
adapt
my
request
in
a
manner
that
accommodates
public
safety
and
national
security
interests
while
ensuring
maximum
transparency
for
the
American
people.
Sincerely,
Ben
Sasse
Chairman,
U.S.
Senate
Judiciary
Subcommittee
on
Oversight,
Agency
Action,
Federal
Rights
and
Federal
Courts
Chairman,
U.S.
Senate
Banking,
Housing,
and
Urban
Affairs
Subcommittee
on
National
Security
and
International
Trade
and
Finance
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