Thursday, May 5 at 7 a.m. – The Senator will deliver keynote remarks at Governor Markell’s final prayer breakfast. This year’s breakfast will be celebrating “Faith and Family.” The event will also feature special musical performances by classical harpist, Emily Foraker and singer/songwriter John Flynn. Open to press. Modern Maturity Center, 1121 Forrest Ave., Dover. Contact Jonathan Dworkin at 302.233.6695.
Thursday, May 5 at 10:45 a.m. – The Senator will deliver keynote remarks at Unites States Naturalization Ceremony. Judge Burke will preside over the ceremony. Open to press. New Castle County Courthouse. Wilmington, DE. Contact the Service for the Foreign Born at 302.577.8390.
Thursday, May 5 at 5:00 p.m. – The Senator will attend and make brief remarks at the annual Delaware Small Business Awards Dinner. This event is aimed at recognizing and awarding the achievements of small business and its supporters in Delaware. SBA’s Delaware District Director, John Fleming, will officially present these winners with their awards. DuPont Country Club, 1001 Rockland Rd., Wilmington. Open to press. Contact Jen Pilcher 302.540.9198.
Thursday, May 5 at 6:00 p.m. – The Senator will attend the Planned Parenthood of Delaware’s Sonia Schorr Sloan Service Award presentation. Gerret van S. Copeland will be receiving the recognition. Arscht Hall, UD, 2600-2800 Pennsylvania Ave., Wilmington. Open to press. Contact the Wilmington Office at 302.655.7293.
Friday, May 6 at 8:00 a.m. – The Senator will deliver keynote remarks at the Kind to Kids 5th Annual Spring Celebration. This event will honor the Kind to Kids foundation’s 5 years of service to Delaware children in need.Kind to Kids provides children with educational support to help get them through a trying period of life. Susan Leath, President and Publisher, Delaware News Journal will be receiving the Community Leader Award, Chip Rossi, Delaware Market President, Bank of America will be receiving the Corporate Service Award, and Anthony Graham, Former Foster Youth will be receiving the Overcoming Challenges for the Rising Star Award.Hotel DuPont, Gold Ball Room. Open to press. Contact Caroline Jones 302.654.5440.
Friday, May 6 at 1:15 a.m. – The Senator will be attending an ice cream social to benefit Newark Senior Center’s 50th year of service to the community. Newark Senior Center, 200 Whitechapel Dr., Newark. Open to press. Contact Carla Grygiel: 302.737.2336 ext. 115.
Friday, May 6 at 6:00 p.m. – The Senator will be delivering keynote remarks at the Delaware End-of Life Coalition’s Awards Ceremony. This ceremony recognizes clinicians and members of the community who provide care or volunteer support to patients at the end of their lives. Those who have demonstrated excellence in delivering palliative care in hospice, long-term care, acute care, and community settings are to be recognized and awarded for their work. Wild Quail Country Club, 1 Clubhouse Dr., Camden. Open to press. Contact Keagan Brown at kbrown@deolc.org.
Saturday, May 7 at 6:15 p.m. – The Senator will be attending the 25th Annual First State Gridiron Dinner and Show. The Gridiron is the longest running annual roast of politicians and business people in Delaware. It has become one of the premier formal affairs in the state and arguably has the single largest gathering of politicians of all stripes short of the General Assembly.Chase Center on the Riverfront, Wilmington, DE.
Washington, DC —United States Chris Coons (D-Del.), along with eight other senators, today urged the U.S. Department of Education (ED) to use the authority that it was given by Congress to fully enforce the “supplement, not supplant” provision in the recently-passed Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). This provision helps ensure the law meets it goal of protecting the civil rights and educational opportunity for all students. The letter was signed by Senators Warren, Murphy, Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.).
The senators explain in their letter that the core purpose of the federal K-12 education law is “to protect the civil rights and educational opportunity for all students, especially our most vulnerable students,” and that the “supplement, not supplant” provision “is critical to ensure that states and districts spend federal education dollars to provide additional resources to low-income schools, and to not simply replace existing investments that states and school districts are already supposed to be making.”
The senators continue, “Simply put—we believe that state and local educational agencies should not use federal funds as an excuse to spend less money on low-income children…The Department has the authority and responsibility to enforce the fiscal accountability safeguards in ESSA through strong regulations and oversight, and that’s precisely what we expect to see.”
Read a PDF copy of the senators’ letter to ED here.
WASHINGTON, D.C. —Today, U.S. Chris Coons (D-Del.) joined a broad coalition of 41 Senate Democrats in pressing the Department of Education to release comprehensive guidance on the protections afforded to transgender and gender non-conforming students in our middle schools, high schools, and colleges.
Students across the country are protected from sex discrimination by a law called Title IX, which says that any educational institution receiving federal funding—a public high school or college, and many private universities, for example—cannot treat people unequally on the basis of sex. And if a school violates that policy, its federal support may be suspended or terminated.
In recent years, both the Education and Justice Departments have clarified that Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity, including in single-sex classrooms and in cases of sexual harassment. But transgender and gender non-conforming students continue to face a disproportionate amount of discrimination compared to their peers. And so, amid attempts by legislatures in states like North Carolina to limit the rights of LGBT people and transgender students, the Senators are calling on Department of Education to release more comprehensive guidance on the full scope of protections Title IX affords transgender and gender non-conforming students.
“We strongly believe that it is our responsibility—not just as senators, but as adults—to protect our children and young people, and to help them flourish,” wrote the Senators. “We applaud and thank the Department of Education, as well as the Department of Justice, for sharing that goal, and for their commitment to equality and work in support of LGBT students. We respectfully request that the Department complete that work by issuing clear, comprehensive guidance.”
The letter, which you can download a copy of by clicking here or read below, was also signed by Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.), Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Martin Heinrich (D-N. Mex.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N. Dak.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Tom Udall (D-N. Mex.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore). It was also supported by some of the country’s top LGBT rights organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Human Rights Campaign.
“The ACLU commends Senators Franken and Baldwin for spearheading this important and timely effort,” James Esseks, director of the ACLU’s LGBT and HIV Projects. “As an organization that has filed a lawsuit to overturn the deeply discriminatory HB 2 in North Carolina, we share the view of the signatories of this letter that it is critically important for the federal government to make clear that laws like HB 2 that mandate systemic, statewide violations of federal laws that ban sex discrimination place a state at real risk of losing significant federal funding.”
“As anti-equality activists mount campaigns across the country to pass radical laws that discriminate against transgender students, it’s crucially important the Department of Education provide clear guidance to school districts about their responsibilities under federal law,” said Human Rights Campaign Government Affairs Director David Stacy. “We commend Senators Franken and Baldwin for their leadership in working to ensure all students, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation, are able to learn in environments free from discrimination and harassment.”
May 2, 2016
Dear Secretary King:
As senators committed to ensuring that all students—including lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students—have access to a public education in an environment free from discrimination, we are writing to request that the Department of Education explain the scope of protections afforded to LGBT students under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) and clarify that state laws requiring discrimination against LGBT students run afoul of Title IX and jeopardize states’ and school districts’ continued receipt of federal funding.
Title IX prohibits discrimination “on the basis of sex”[1] in any educational program or activity that receives federal funding—including public primary and secondary schools, public colleges and universities, and private schools and universities that accept student loans or federal funds. While Title IX is widely known for increasing women’s and girls’ participation in sports, this landmark civil rights law guards against sex discrimination in all aspects of educational opportunity, including harassment, housing, admissions and recruiting, and financial aid. Virtually all public schools and public and private colleges and universities in the country receive federal funding from the Department of Education and other federal agencies. Institutions that fall short of their obligations under Title IX risk the suspension or termination of federal funding.
Consistent with caselaw in the area of employment discrimination, both your Department and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have clarified that Title IX’s prohibition on sex discrimination prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity. The Department of Education issued guidance clarifying that Title IX prohibits gender-based harassment of students,[2] including discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming students,[3] and failure to respect transgender students’ gender identity when operating single-sex classes.[4] Both DOJ and the Department of Education have applied this interpretation of Title IX to support transgender students challenging school policies banning them from using the restroom or locker room that corresponds with their gender identity.[5] DOJ explained that “[t]reating a student adversely because the sex assigned to him at birth does not match his gender identity is literally discrimination ‘on the basis of sex.’ . . . Prohibiting a transgender male student from using boys’ restrooms, when other non-transgender male students face no such restriction, deprives him not only of equal educational opportunity but also ‘of equal status, respect, and dignity.’”[6] Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit agreed with the administration’s interpretation that Title IX protects the rights of transgender students to use sex segregated facilities that are consistent with their gender identity—a significant victory.[7] The Departments’ interpretation and enforcement of Title IX is consistent with courts’ and federal agencies’ interpretations of other sex discrimination statutes, including Title VII.
However, despite the important steps the federal government has taken to secure equality for transgender and gender non-conforming students, state legislators are pursuing policies that seek to halt this progress. North Carolina’s recent enactment of House Bill 2, a discriminatory measure that forbids transgender students appropriate access to bathrooms and locker rooms, provoked a swift backlash from business leaders, the National Basketball Association, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and even the leading Republican candidate for president. Nonetheless, state legislators in Tennessee, Kansas, South Carolina, and Minnesota continued to push similar measures.
In the face of ongoing legislative assaults on LGBT students, and transgender students in particular, we remain concerned that the Department of Education has not yet further clarified that schools permitting discrimination against LGBT students to continue unabated risk losing their eligibility for federal funds. Although the Department of Education has stated that Title IX covers gender identity discrimination, including for single-sex classrooms and sexual harassment, it has not yet provided specific guidance to schools on how these protections apply in the myriad other circumstances experienced by transgender students in schools. Last week, the New York Times reported that the Department of Education has drafted guidance for school administrators on their obligations to LGBT students under Title IX.[8] We urge the Department to release that guidance now.
We strongly believe that it is our responsibility—not just as senators, but as adults—to protect our children and young people, and to help them flourish. We applaud and thank the Department of Education, as well as the Department of Justice, for sharing that goal, and for their commitment to equality and work in support of LGBT students. We respectfully request that the Department complete that work by issuing clear, comprehensive guidance.
WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), member of the Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship, authored an oped in The Hill on why Congress must take steps to encourage American companies to invest in research and development.
American businesses of all sizes depend on research and development (R&D) to create new and better products and services that allow them to grow and meet the needs of their customers. Congress should be doing everything we can to support these entrepreneurs and innovators, and while we’ve made some progress, we have more work to do. Let me explain.
Long-term investment in R&D is a growth strategy not just for a company, but also for our entire country. For the United States to remain competitive in the global marketplace, we must encourage investments in R&D that keep businesses growing, innovating, and hiring employees in the U.S. That’s why the very first bill I introduced in the Senate sought to make the R&D tax credit both permanent for companies that already use it and more accessible to small businesses, like startups, that can’t currently take advantage of it.
Instead of investing in new technologies, materials, and processes that can help them grow in the long-term, many companies prioritize immediate profits. We’ve seen this kind of shortsighted decision-making lead companies to cut jobs, merge, or outsource. This not only impacts a company’s bottom line, but also hurts the communities that built these companies over generations.
Before I ran for public office, I worked in the private sector for W.L. Gore & Associates, an advanced materials manufacturing company in Delaware, where I saw firsthand the direct connection between investing in R&D and creating jobs. Gore made research and development a priority, thanks in part to the critical R&D tax credit. These investments were essential to the company’s growth.
Unfortunately, many small businesses and startups in Delaware and across the country haven’t had access to the R&D tax credit because the credit could could only be applied against a company’s income tax. Since many of the newest and most innovative startups aren’t profitable in their early years, they don’t have an income tax liability against which to apply a credit. To me, it’s common sense that small startups should be able to access the same job-creating credit as larger companies such as Gore, DuPont, and Siemens.
Since getting anything sensible through Congress is a challenge, I fought to address this problem by partnering with Republican Senator Pat Roberts to introduce the Innovators Job Creation Act, which allows startups and small businesses to access the R&D credit by applying it against their payroll tax and their Alternative Minimum Tax.
Another flaw with the R&D tax credit was that it required reauthorization every year and was only extended retroactively. Businesses depend on long-term stability to take risks, but without a permanent tax credit, they were left not knowing if they would have access to R&D incentives in a year’s time.
These efforts finally paid off last December, when Congress passed a bipartisan tax deal that included both provisions. The R&D tax credit is now permanent and accessible to startups and small businesses. Entrepreneurs should only be limited by the reach of their ideas in the marketplace, not their creativity with the tax code.
Now more than ever, I encourage innovative and research-intensive startups to take advantage of the R&D tax credit. Companies should take the time to contact an accountant, the IRS, or local small business resources to see if they will qualify for the R&D credit when they file their taxes next year. I’ve also included some helpful information on my website, coons-staging.creativengine.com/r-and-d.
The good news is that we’ve made progress on the R&D tax credit. But this is just the first step in growing start-ups in Delaware and across the country. Over the last 25 years, companies less than five years old created an average of 2 million jobs per year – yet the rate of startup creation in the United States today is well below the global average, hitting its lowest level in 30 years.
That’s why Republican Senator Cory Gardner and I teamed up to introduce the Support Startup Businesses Act, which would create a pilot program that allows Small Business and Innovation Research (SBIR) program awardees to use a portion of their grants for startup-related commercialization activities.
While the SBIR program is one of the best federal programs available to small businesses looking to innovate, it doesn’t support start-up activities, which could include anything from intellectual property protection to market research to business model development. This bill will encourage startups to make decisions that are in their long-term interest, helping them avoid the pitfalls of “short-termism.”
I’m proud we’ve expanded the R&D tax credit and made it permanent, and I’m optimistic the Senate Small Business Committee will soon move forward with legislation that includes key provisions from my SBIR bill. But that’s not enough. We need to be doing everything we can to support new entrepreneurs through the challenging first years of building a business, and that’s why I’ll keep fighting in the Senate for common sense ideas like these.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons’ (D-DE) bipartisan resolution to strengthen the U.S.-Israel economic partnership passed the U.S. Senate this week unanimously. The resolution, S. Res. 383, was introduced by Senator Coons and Senators Jon Tester (D-MT) and David Perdue (D-GA) on March 1 and approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on March 10, 2016.
“I am pleased to see the Senate pass a resolution commemorating the strength of the economic ties between the United States and Israel,” said Senator Coons. “The security ties between our countries are essential, but the economic ties, based on a common culture of entrepreneurship and innovation are just as important. I am glad that the Senate was able to draw attention to the strength of our ties in science, industrial research and development, and other fast-growing sectors.”
“I’m very glad to see the Senate move so quickly to recognize the importance of the U.S.-Israel economic relationship,” said Aaron Menenberg, Director of Congressional Affairs, Israel Allies Foundation. “While common values are the internal bond between Americans and Israelis, the economic benefits from our alliance and their incredible impact on our quality of life continue to bring us closer. Senators Perdue, Tester and Coons and the other co-sponsors should be applauded for their leadership. I look forward to working with them in the future to bring more economic benefit from our alliance with Israel to Americans around the country.”
Since the signing of the U.S.-Israel Free Trade Agreement 30 years ago, Israel has become one of our country’s most dynamic economic collaborators in the Middle East and North Africa. Specifically, S. Res. 383 seeks to: (1) affirm the robustness of the economic relationship; (2) recognize that science and technology innovation present new frontiers for economic cooperation; (3) encourage the Administration to expand and regularize existing forums of economic dialogue with Israel; and (4) support the exploration of new agreements, including in the fields of energy, water, agriculture, medicine, neurotechnology and cybersecurity.
In addition to U.S. Senators Coons, Perdue, and Tester co-sponsors of the resolution include U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Bob Casey (D-PA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Gary Peters (D-MI), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ron Wyden (D-OR).
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) today introduced the American Innovators and Entrepreneurs Act to expand and improve the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) highly successful Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program that trains scientists and engineers with the skills needed to start new businesses and create new jobs.
I-Corps connects scientists and engineers with the technological, entrepreneurial, and business communities necessary to move discoveries from the laboratory to the market. This bill builds on NSF’s recent success with I-Corps to help create regional networks for innovation by providing researchers, students, and universities with the training and resources they need to develop products and services that benefit the economy and society.
“The U.S. has the best scientists and engineers in the world, but they often lack the business skills necessary to turn their great ideas into new products and start-up businesses,” said Senator Coons. “I’m proud to introduce this commonsense bipartisan bill that helps our innovative and entrepreneurial scientists and engineers bridge the difficult divide between laboratory and market.”
“Nebraska is filled with scientists and engineers who have big ideas that could change the world,” said Senator Fischer. “I’m proud to join Senator Coons to introduce bipartisan legislation that would help American innovators build businesses and market their products in the U.S. and internationally. Working together, we are offering a solution that will grow jobs and strengthen our economy.”
“Spurring the commercialization of new technologies developed in America’s universities and national laboratories is one of the most important steps the United States can take to stimulate innovation,” said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation President, Dr. Robert Atkinson. “By increasing funding for, and access to, the highly effective NSF I-Corps program, the American Innovators and Entrepreneurs Act would give a critical boost to the U.S. innovation economy. ITIF proudly supports this important bipartisan legislation from Sens. Coons and Fischer and encourages Congress to act quickly to pass it.”
“The Science Center is proud to support the American Innovators and Entrepreneurs Act,” said University City Science Center President and CEO, Dr. Stephen Tang. “This bipartisan bill, from Sens. Coons and Fischer will expand and improve NSF’s highly successful I-Corps program that provides valuable entrepreneurial training to our nation’s scientists and engineers. We welcome Sens. Coons’ and Fischer’s efforts to support regional innovation networks and the work of organizations like the Science Center through the I-Corps program. The Science Center has been a long-time supporter of innovative scientists and engineers in the greater Philadelphia/Wilmington region, and we urge Congress to support this important legislation.”
“This bipartisan bill from Senators Coons and Fischer recognizes a critical innovation gap and provides an effective solution based on a proven model, NSF’s I-Corps program,” said Delaware Biotechnology Institute Director Dr. Kelvin H. Lee.“The Delaware Biotechnology Institute supports this legislation advancing U.S. competitiveness and hopes the Senate acts quickly to pass it.”
Created by Congress in 1950 to promote the progress of science, and responsible for approximately one-quarter of all federal support for R&D at America’s colleges and universities, the NSF has worked successfully since 2011 to develop I-Corps as an innovative solution to increasing commercialization of federal investments in research and development.
The American Innovators and Entrepreneurs Act would:
Explicitly authorize the NSF I-Corps program through 2020.
Expand opportunities for I-Corps training to all Federal researchers and agencies.
Encourage partnerships between I-Corps and the highly successful SBIR/STTR programs.
Provide steady increases in I-Corps funding over the next four years.
Require NSF to submit biennial reports on I-Corps’ effectiveness to Congress.
The bill has been endorsed by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation; University of Delaware; University City Science Center; Delaware Biotechnology Institute; The Delaware Small Business Development Center; and The University of Delaware Office of Economic Innovation and Partnerships.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, spoke on the Senate floor yesterday to push back on three claims made by Dr. Valiollah Seif, the governor of Iran’s central bank, during a recent speech at the Council on Foreign Relations. In his remarks, Sen. Coons explains how a coordinated sanctions regime did force Iran to engage in negotiations regarding its nuclear program, why claims that Iran’s nuclear program has always been entirely peaceful are false, and why it is clear that Iran, not the U.S. or EU, is holding back the Iranian economy.
Senator Coons’ full remarks below:
Mr. President, earlier this month the governor of Iran’s central bank, Dr. Valiollah Seif, spoke at the Council on Foreign Relations here in Washington, and he made three primary claims:
First, he said sanctions did not, in fact, lead Iran to agree to the terms of the recent nuclear agreement between Iran and the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the EU, Russia, and China. Sanctions, he said, did not force Iran to agree.
Second, he said Iran’s nuclear program has always been entirely peaceful.
And third, he said the U.S. and our European allies have not honored our commitments under the terms of the nuclear deal, also known as the JCPOA.
Today, I’d like to push back on all three of these claims.
First, on sanctions. Governor Seif said, and I quote, “contrary to baseless allegation[s] that some people made, sanctions did not and could not force [Iran] to engage into a negotiation with our P5+1 colleague[s],” the nations I referenced.
The facts clearly say otherwise.
U.S. sanctions have been a major feature of U.S. policy towards Iran since Iran’s 1979 revolution. The imposition of international sanctions and worldwide bilateral sanctions on Iran began in 2006 and increased dramatically in 2010.
In June of 2010, Congress passed the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act, also known as CISADA, which weakened Iran’s access to the international financial system and bolstered existing sanctions specifically against Iran’s human rights abuses
That same month, with the support not just of our European allies but also Russia and China, the Obama administration and then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton led the passage of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929, which created the most comprehensive and stinging international sanctions the Iranian regime had ever faced.
Two years later, in 2012, the National Defense Authorization Act designated the Central Bank of Iran for additional sanctions, which the Obama administration successfully used to undermine Iran’s ability to sell oil on world markets.
The Obama administration also convinced allies such as Japan, Australia, South Korea, and Canada to agree to additional bilateral measures that increased pressure on Iran’s financial, banking, insurance, transportation, and energy sectors.
The effects of these coordinated sanctions were clear, swift, and direct. The value of the Iranian currency decreased dramatically. Obstacles to Iranian trade forced businesses to close and increased inflation within Iran. Iran’s oil exports and government revenues declined sharply.
In 2011, for example, Iran exported about 2.4 million barrels of oil per day. By March of 2014, Iranian exports were down to just 1 million barrels a day – in a nation for which petroleum makes up 80 percent of all commodity exports.
In July 2012, former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called the sanctions regime, quote, “the most severe and strictest sanctions ever imposed on a country.”
The coordinated sanctions regime was so effective that Iran’s current president even described Iran’s economic situation as if the country had, quote, “returned to the 19th century” under the sanctions regime.
So, Mr. President, it is clear on this first point that sanctions imposed an unsustainable cost on Iran and forced it to the table to engage in negotiations with the west regarding its nuclear program.
That brings me to his second erroneous argument: that Iran has pursued nuclear technology with only peaceful purposes in mind.
Iran’s actions directly contradict this claim.
In 2002, members of the international community revealed that Iran had, in fact, been attempting to build a secret uranium enrichment program at Natanz, in central Iran, and a heavy water plutonium reactor at its Arak facility in the northwestern part of the country. Only because Iran failed to keep these facilities secret did the IAEA, or the International Atomic Energy Agency, finally begin having the opportunity to monitor these sites in 2002.
In 2009, the United States, France, and Britain revealed the existence of another uranium enrichment plant buried deep under a mountain near the city of Qom.
The evidence continues. In 2011, the IAEA released a report on the “possible military dimensions,” of Iran’s nuclear efforts. The report detailed areas in which the agency had evidence of Iran’s past, and potentially ongoing, work on nuclear weaponization and the development of nuclear warheads for missile delivery systems.
The IAEA’s final report on the “possible military dimensions” of Iran’s nuclear program, issued in December of 2015, found that, and I quote, “a range of activities relevant to the development of a nuclear explosive device were conducted in Iran prior to the end of 2003 as a coordinated effort,” end quote. The report also found that Iran conducted certain activities relevant to nuclear weaponization for at least several years after 2003, and that some of these activities did not end until 2009.
It’s not just on-the-ground reports and secret nuclear facilities that suggest that Iran’s nuclear efforts have not always been entirely peaceful.
Let me remind my colleagues that just last month, Iran tested a ballistic missile that supposedly had a message on its side proclaiming, in Hebrew, quote, “Israel must be wiped off the Earth.”
An Iranian regime that continues to advocate for the destruction of Israel, America’s vital ally, Israel, does not sound like a nation that has been and hopes to continue to develop nuclear technology for anything remotely peaceful.
An Iranian regime that ships illicit weapons to support the murderous regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, or the Houthi rebels in Yemen, or Hezbollah in Lebanon, is not seeking to develop weapons for peaceful purposes.
An Iranian regime that illegally tests dangerous ballistic missile technology – some of which is capable of carrying a nuclear weapon, all of which violates UN Security Council Resolutions – does not have peaceful intentions.
Mr. President, because of this behavior, we have every reason to distrust Iran’s claims that its nuclear efforts were always peaceful.
Iran continually misled the international community about the nature of its nuclear program. It continually disguised its efforts to conduct research and other activities to help it better understand how to develop a nuclear weapon. It continues to threaten Israel, to test dangerous ballistic missiles, and to support terrorism throughout the Middle East.
That’s why I cannot accept Seif’s argument that Iran’s nuclear program has always been entirely peaceful.
The third claim made by Seif last week was that the United States and our European allies have not honored our obligations under the nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA. Iran’s evidence for that claim is that the sanctions relief granted to Iran for complying with the terms of the agreement hasn’t suddenly unleashed a flurry of Iranian economic activity.
But as Adam Szubin, our own Department of Treasury’s Acting Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, recently put it, throughout the negotiations between the United States and our allies and partners and Iran, the U.S. and our allies, quote, “did not guarantee economic outcomes, or a flood of immediate business into Iran,” end quote.
And Acting Undersecretary Szubin is right: Iran is responsible for making Iran an attractive, safe place to do business – and for many individuals and businesses, Iran appears neither attractive nor safe.
For example, in October, Iran arrested Siamak Namazi, a businessman who is a dual American-Iranian citizen. Namazi worked for a petroleum company in the UAE and previously ran a consulting business in Iran. He still has not been charged.
In fact, the only recent development in Mr. Namazi’s case is that his father, Baquer, an 80-year-old man who suffers from heart problems, was arrested in February and sent to Iran’s notorious Elvin prison. Why would Iranian leaders expect foreign investment to flow into Iran when it arbitrarily arrests and detains those seeking business opportunities for their own country?
And it’s not just Iran’s flawed legal system or its ongoing human rights violations. More than half of Iran’s economy consists of shadowy organizations controlled in part by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC, the hardline military force committed to the preservation of the Iranian regime. The pseudo-private entities that are tied to the IRGC include banks, businesses, religious foundations, pension funds, and welfare projects that also serve as front companies for the IRGC.
During his question-and-answer session at the Council on Foreign Relations, Mr. Seif was asked whether foreign businesses considering investing in Iran or doing business with Iran could be confident that money invested in Iran would not fund the IRGC. He was unable to declare definitively that it would not.
Mr. President, the onus, the burden, is on Iran, not the international community or the United States, to reform Iran’s domestic economy and to make sure its businesses are not linked to the IRGC, to make it a country transparent and open, and to engage in actions that suggest to the world it is a trustworthy partner.
The burden is on Iran to comply with the JCPOA.
The burden is on Iran to stop testing ballistic missiles, abusing human rights, and supporting terrorism.
If Iran is unhappy with the level of economic relief it has received since this agreement came into effect, it only has its own actions to blame. As Acting Undersecretary Szubin put it, quote, “the JCPOA” – the nuclear deal – “is an international arrangement, not a cashier’s check.”
Mr. President, I commend Dr. Seif for his willingness to travel to the United States and to make his case in front of our Council on Foreign Relations. I think this is a constructive step. But, as I’ve shown, I think the case he made is a weak one.
The evidence is clear: a coordinated sanctions regime did force Iran to negotiate. And Iran’s nuclear program was not entirely peaceful in its intent or its execution. And the U.S. and EU aren’t holding the Iranian economy back – the Iranian government is. The Iranian governments actions are.
In my travels throughout the Middle East, and in conversations with regional leaders and ambassadors here, it’s apparent these nations all share one overriding concern: Iranian aggression. This challenge unites countries as diverse as Israel and Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
As my colleagues may have seen, in an op-ed in the Washington Post just last week, Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Zarif sought to justify recent steps Iran has taken to dramatically build up its defenses.
Mr. President, countries do indeed have a right to self-defense – but there is a difference between self-defense efforts undertaken by responsible members of the international community, and some of Iran’s recent aggressive and destabilizing actions.
Responsible nations don’t support terrorist groups throughout the Middle East and stoke sectarianism to undermine the security of their neighbors.
Responsible nations don’t directly threaten the destruction of Israel.
Responsible nations seek common ground and the pursuit of mutual interests with their neighbors.
Responsible nations abide by UN Security Council Resolutions.
Iran’s actions make it clear it is not yet a responsible member of the international community. If Iran, then, has complaints about the relief it’s received under this agreement, it should move its behavior and begin to uphold its commitments under the deal while changing the dangerous aspects of its ongoing behavior.
Yet instead, Iran continues to try and dominate its region – a valuable reminder that we must continue to enforce the terms of the JCPOA strictly and push back against Iran’s bad behavior that’s outside the parameters of the agreement.
While I commend the Obama administration for its recent actions interdicting illicit arms shipments from Iran to the Houthis, continuing to designate IRGC-linked entities for more sanctions, and taking other critical steps to push back on Iran’s bad behavior and destabilizing activities in the region, I also remain concerned about the administration’s willingness to entertain Iranian complaints about sanctions relief.
I urge the United States and our allies to remain cautious in our dealings with Iran. We must remember that the most important contract with Iran is the one we’ve already agreed to – that is, this nuclear deal – and we must continue to remind Iran that its own behavior is the real cause of its continuing international isolation.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statements after the committee unanimously passed the END Wildlife TraffickingAct to combat the rapidly growing crisis of wildlife trafficking.
“Demand for wildlife products has spiked in recent years, causing illegal wildlife trafficking to grow at an alarming rate,” said Senator Coons. “Wildlife trafficking is not just an environmental challenge, but a multi-billion dollar industry that fuels well-organized criminal networks. It is a growing crisis that demands action now, and I’m pleased this committee came together to pass our legislation that will use an interagency approach to address this problem from all sides.We cannot wait any longer to use every tool at our disposal to curb this global crisis.”
“It’s going to take more than a one-size-fits-all approach to end wildlife trafficking,” said Senator Flake. “This bill will address threats posed by poachers and traffickers on a country-by-country basis, and it will send a message to poachers, traffickers, and to those who create the demand fueling these horrific acts that the United States Congress takes this matter seriously.”
The END Wildlife Trafficking Act supports the ongoing work of the Presidential Task Force on Combating Wildlife Trafficking and directs the Task Force to coordinate relevant agencies and U.S. missions in working with countries experiencing wildlife crime to develop strategic plans with recommendations for how each country can combat threats to wildlife.
The END Wildlife Trafficking Act would:
Require an interagency approach in working with the governments of countries affected by wildlife poaching and trafficking on an analysis of the threats each country faces, and recommendations on how to address these threats, including coordination with non-governmental organizations;
Authorize the Secretary of State, the USAID Administrator, and other relevant agency heads to engage in efforts to address poaching and wildlife trafficking problems, including encouraging community conservation programs;
Include strategic reviews to monitor progress made on stemming the tide of wildlife trafficking in countries with significant poaching, trafficking, or demand for illegal wildlife products; and,
Require annual reporting on how all taxpayer dollars appropriated to fight wildlife trafficking are being spent, to include the costs of the administration of the Task Force.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today applauded the passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act in the House of Representatives. The Senate bill, introduced by Senators Coons and Hatch, passed unanimously on April 4. The President has expressed support for the legislation and is expected to sign the bill into law soon.
“Today’s passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act in the House means that this bill can soon become law and finally provide the critical federal legal protection for trade secrets that U.S. companies deserve in Delaware and across the country,” said Senator Coons. “I’m thrilled that Democrats and Republicans came together in the Senate and now the House to pass this bill, demonstrating the truly bipartisan nature of this legislation and its broad coalition of support from American businesses. I look forward to seeing the President sign this bill into law soon.”
“I’m pleased the House has followed the Senate’s lead and passed the Hatch-Coons Defend Trade Secrets Act,” said Senator Hatch. “Enacting this bill into law will help address the critical problem of trade secret theft, which stifles innovation and costs American companies billions of dollars annually. I hope our success in acting to protect trade secrets will serve as a spring board for additional Congressional action to safeguard other forms of intellectual property.”
“We are pleased that Congress has taken this positive action to strengthen intellectual property protections, and we look forward to the President’s signature,” said Krysta Harden, Vice President of Public Policy, DuPont. “Our long line of innovations include well-known technologies and brands, from DuPont™ Kevlar® and DuPont™ Tyvek® to DuPont agricultural seed and crop protection products. They all reached the market with ingenuity, many years of research, and with the support of intellectual property protection – including protection against trade secret theft. Passage of The Defend Trade Secrets Act responds to a growing global threat by putting into place a stronger process that gives federal courts the ability to act immediately to resolve trade secret theft disputes.
“The American economy suffers great economic losses each year due to trade secret theft. According to the Commission on the Theft of American Intellectual Property, an estimated $300 billion in lost product sales and transactions, and over 2 million U.S. jobs are lost annually. Without a federal standard, trade secret owners have had to appeal to state courts or federal prosecutors to protect their rights. This process has resulted in multistate procedural and jurisdictional issues which have been costly, complicated, and time consuming.
“Realizing the full potential of our innovation often includes knowledge-building that can span decades, so for DuPont the growing trend in trade secret theft and the need for stronger intellectual property protections hits all too close to home. We thank Senator Chuck Grassley and Representative Bob Goodlatte for their leadership in shepherding this legislation through the Senate and House Judiciary Committees to the President, and Senator Chris Coons as a lead sponsor of the legislation and longtime champion and advocate for stronger trade secret protection.”
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) have introduced a resolution commemorating World Malaria Day, which was observed on April 25. Wicker and Coons are co-chairs of the Senate Malaria and Neglected Tropical Disease Caucus. The measure recognizes the significance of reducing malaria prevalence and deaths in an effort to improve overall child and maternal health across the globe, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
“Malaria is a preventable, treatable illness, yet it is still a leading cause of death in many developing countries around the world,” said Senator Coons. “Malaria is a health, humanitarian, security, and economic challenge that requires us all to work together to solve. I’m proud to join Senator Wicker and a bipartisan group of colleagues in introducing a resolution affirming our commitment to ending preventable deaths from malaria once and for all.”
“I am pleased to support America’s continued leadership in the global fight against malaria,” said Senator Wicker. “Prevention and control programs under the President’s Malaria Initiative, reinforced with groundbreaking research by the U.S. Army, have had a tremendous impact on fighting this preventable disease for the 3.2 billion people who are at risk of contracting it.”
Malaria, a parasitic blood-borne disease spread by mosquitoes, is most prevalent in the developing world, with 90 percent of deaths occurring in Africa. Children under the age of five account for an estimated 70 percent of malaria-related deaths each year. In 2015, transmission of malaria occurred in 95 countries and territories. The President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) – started by President George W. Bush in 2005 – has helped reduce malaria deaths by 35 percent since its inception by partnering with local governments, the private sector, and faith communities and organizations.
In addition to Senators Coons and Wicker, cosponsors of the resolution include: Sens. John Boozman, R-Ark., Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Thad Cochran, R-Miss., Richard Durbin D-Ill., Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla.