Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger chastised for trying to subvert the Iran Nuclear Deal

1557 Cottage Lane, Towson, MD 21286

March 16, 2021

Representative Dutch Ruppersberger

375 Padonia Road

Timonium, MD 21093

Rep. Ruppersberger:

  We were shocked to see that you signed on to a letter organized by Rep. Anthony Brown's undermining President Biden’s attempts at diplomacy with Iran. It’s bad enough that President Biden and Secretary Blinken are already taking too long to rejoin the Iran Nuclear Deal (JCPOA). This letter was signed by 70 Republicans.

  Maryland Peace Action, CODEPINK, the Baltimore Nonviolence Center and others are baffled that Rep. Brown would organize a letter which 70 Republicans would sign. Not one Republican voted for COVID-19 relief, and many refused to certify that Biden was elected president. This letter urged the Biden administration to take a “comprehensive approach” to Iran, rather than a direct revival of the JCPOA. Let’s be clear: a “comprehensive approach” is a non-starter. It is code for continuing Trump’s march toward war with Iran.

   One of the Republican signers of Brown’s letter was Mike Garcia.  Below is a press release sent out by Garcia on February 4.  It makes clear that he sides with Trump regarding the Iran Deal.

MIKE GARCIA: ‘THE IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL HAS BEEN A FAILURE SINCE DAY ONE’

Sends Letter to President Biden Urging Him Not to Re-Enter Iran Nuclear Deal

 Washington, February 4, 2021

National Security

 Representative Mike Garcia (R-CA) joined Representative Greg Murphy, M.D. (R-NC) and 50 other House Republicans in sending a letter to President Joe Biden urging him not to re-enter the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal.

 Washington, D.C. -- Representative Mike Garcia (R-CA) joined Representative Greg Murphy, M.D. (R-NC) and 50 other House Republicans in sending a letter to President Joe Biden urging him not to re-enter the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal.

 “The Iran Nuclear Deal has been a failure since day one,” said Garcia. “The JCPOA did not prevent a nuclear Iran - in fact, it encouraged a nuclear arsenal and facilitated Iran’s support of terrorists. Pulling out of the deal was the right thing to do. The Trump Administration’s pressure campaign on Iran has resulted in a power balance shift in the Middle East and we have since seen more countries build stronger relationships with Israel. I have long said that Israel is the United States’ most critical ally and plays a key role in the effort to obtain stability and eventual peace in the Middle East. As a former U.S. Navy Pilot, I flew combat missions in the Middle East and saw firsthand why it is essential that we continue to improve and strengthen our relationship with Israel, which is why we must not re-enter the Iran Nuclear Deal.”

 JCPOA was originally adopted during the Obama Administration in 2015, President Trump withdrew the United States from the JCPOA in 2018. During his presidential campaign, Biden indicated he would rejoin the agreement.

 It is puzzling that four House members from Maryland would align themselves with a Trumpist member of Congress.   Time is short.  Iran will have an election in a couple of months, and if the U.S. has still not re-entered the agreement, the hard liners in Iran will have the upper hand, and the likelihood of a deal being struck will become virtually nil, while the chance of a devastating war will greatly increase.

 In addition, Democrat Bob Menendez, the new chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a frequent keynote speaker at policy summits of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and a long-time opponent of the Iran deal, has joined with Republican Senator Lindsay Graham, perhaps Trump’s closest confidant and adviser in the Senate, to organize a similar letter in the Senate; this letter sets up impossible standards, making diplomacy impossible and derailing the Iran deal—Obama’s signature foreign policy achievement.

The war drums are beating in D.C. We do not want our government to go to a war with Iran.  We will continue to protest U.S. bellicosity, and want you to apologize for signing a letter supported by Trump-influenced Republicans.

Kagiso, Janice Sevre-Duszynska 

Max Obuszewski