Even as advocates of peace in the Middle East celebrate the release of the
five American prisoners held in Iran’s jails, as well as the release of the
Iranians — most of them dual citizens of the US and Iran — either convicted
of violating US sanctions or charged
with doing so, a dark cloud obscures this sunlit moment. I’m talking about the
political response — from both parties — to the prisoner swap, which bodes
ill for the future.
Frontrunner
Donald Trump simultaneously condemned the prisoner swap while taking credit
for it. “So I’ve been hitting them hard,” he said, “and I think I might have
had something to do with it.” Yes, it’s all about him: a typical Trumpian
response. And yet on the other hand, this was another “bad deal,” like — in
Trump’s view — the nuclear deal:
“We give them $150 billion, we give them essentially 22 people — 21, 22
people — but these are people that really did have problems, and we’re getting
back four people … That’s the way we negotiate. That’s the way we negotiate.
It’s so sad. It’s so sad.”
It’s not at all surprising that this nonsense is coming from a megalomaniacal
lunatic like Trump. What’s disturbing, however — although not the least bit
surprising — is that a more sophisticated version of this is coming from the
frontrunner on the other side of the partisan divide. While paying lip service
to the Obama administration’s “achievement” in securing the nuclear deal — and
now the release of the five Americans held by Tehran — Hillary Clinton has proposed
undoing all that by imposing new sanctions on Iran:
“Hours after the U.S. dropped sanctions on Iran as part of the nuclear deal,
Democratic primary front-runner Hillary Clinton called for new sanctions on
the nation for its ballistic missile program….
“’Iran is still violating UN Security Council resolutions with its
ballistic missile program, which should be met with new sanctions designations
and firm resolve,’ she said. ‘These prisoners were held unjustly by a regime
that continues to threaten the peace and security of the Middle East. Another
American, Bob Levinson, still isn’t home with his family.’