Congress Passes Iran Sanctions Bill
    
    By Samuel Rubenfeld
    
    August 2, 2012
    
    Congress easily passed a bill Wednesday night that imposes tough sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program
    
    The legislation, which passed the House on a 421-6 vote and sailed through the Senate via voice vote, now heads to President Barack Obama for his expected signature
    
    Among other things, the legislation closes loopholes in existing sanctions law, and adds penalties for those that aid Iran’s petroleum, petrochemical, insurance, shipping and financial sectors. It also broadens the list of available programs under which sanctions can be imposed on Iranian individuals and entities
    
    The bill imposes sanctions on the parent companies of foreign subsidiaries violating sanctions, and requires the disclosure of all sanction-able activity to the Securities and Exchange Commission
    
    The bill comes on top of sanctions legislation signed into law last year that targets anyone doing business with Iran’s central bank, which routes most of its oil transactions
    
    It was the product of a compromise between Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D., S.D.) and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R., Fla.)
    
    “While we have clearly placed all options on the table in this standoff with Iran, our goal is not to pick a fight with Iran, but to politically isolate Iran and deprive Iran of the resources and technology it needs to achieve its goal,” said Sen. Bob Menendez, (D., N.J.), in a statement
    
    In the House, Reps. Ron Paul (R., Texas) and Dennis Kucinich (D., Ohio) voiced opposition to the bill, saying it would increase the likelihood of armed conflict with Iran
    
    “It is so similar to what we went through in the early part of this last decade when we were beating the war drums to go to war against Iraq. And it was all a facade. There was no danger from Iraq. So this is what we are doing, beating the war drums once again,” Paul was quoted by Foreign Policy as saying