The United States needs to keep the pressure on Iran over its nuclear enrichment program, U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn told anchor Charles Payne on Fox News.
The interview video feed from “Sunday Morning Futures,” which aired Saturday, is available here. The transcript is available here.
Blackburn is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Iran is desperate, the senator said, and, “Bear in mind, their economy is shrinking six to ten percent this year. Inflation is at forty percent.”
President Donald Trump is doing the right thing with sanctions to stop them from enriching uranium and supporting terrorism, she said. This problem dates to the 1970s with the Iranian revolution.
“The pressure is having an effect,” she said.
The U.S. learned during President Barack Obama’s years that “leading from behind does not work,” she said in response to a question about getting European allies on board.
Blackburn said she is holding out hope that diplomacy can work.
Blackburn has been a consistent ally on President Trump’s efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
On June 27, the Johnson City Press quoted her as saying she supports the president’s new sanctions, which are in response to Iran shooting down an unmanned American drone.
“What we do know is this: Iran’s economy is in shambles,” she said. “They have lots of regional proxies that do some of their bidding and carry out their work.”
Blackburn pointed to a May 18 Washington Post story that reported Iran has cut the amount of money it sends to the Lebanese Hezbollah militia since the Trump administration imposed new sanctions on trade with Iran last year, which Blackburn said has hurt the organization’s ability to conduct “adverse actions.”
In late June, when Trump placed sanctions on Iran, President Hassan Rouhani called the White House “mentally retarded.”
Blackburn, as a Senate candidate, supported Trump’s May 2018 decision to pull out of Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, The Tennessee Star reported at the time.
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Jason M. Reynolds has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist at outlets of all sizes.
Is Senator Blackburn willing to risk her own life in Iraq? Don’t play with the lives of our own soldiers just so you can make yourself look tough from the safety of your air-conditioned office!