Dave McCormick Calls on Sen. Bob Casey to Block Biden’s $6 Billion Payment to Iran

Republican U.S. Senate candidate in Pennsylvania Dave McCormick called on Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) to block President Joe Biden’s promised $6 billion payment to Iran amid reports that Iran worked with Hamas to plan the violent terror attack on Israel.

“With hundreds of Israelis dead, thousands wounded, and dozens taken hostage by Hamas, plus at least eleven Americans lives lost, this act of war by terrorists in the Gaza Strip cannot go unpunished,” McCormick wrote in a letter to Casey. “As Israel exercises its right to self-defense in the coming weeks, we must ensure that the United States does everything we can to help our ally in its time of need and sustain that support for as long as it takes.”

McCormick said Iran’s role in supporting Hamas’s attack on Israel “should be a bipartisan concern.”

McCormick wrote: 

Hamas has directly acknowledged that Iran is their biggest financial supporter and this attack was backed by Iran. And as the Wall Street Journal reported, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has worked with Hamas for weeks to help plan the coordinated air, land, and sea attack on Israel, held meetings in Lebanon with Hamas, Hezbollah, and senior Iranian officials, including Iran’s foreign minister, to coordinate the attack, and gave the green light for the operation on October 2.

Notably, Casey’s voting record shows the Pennsylvania senator has taken a lighthearted approach to issues regarding Iran. For example, Casey said he was proud to support the Iran Nuclear Deal, arguing it was in America’s national security interest and would “constrain the Iranian nuclear program.”

“I voted for it, and I think it was the right decision to vote for it,” Casey said in 2018.

In September 2015, Casey voted against cloture for an amendment that would have required Iran to recognize Israel and release American hostages. Further, Casey voted against an amendment to the omnibus bill in 2009 that would have required the secretary of state to issue a report on whether additional funds provided to the Egyptian government could be used to expand the counter-smuggling efforts in Gaza. 

“Senator Casey, as Pennsylvania’s senior senator and someone who has been deeply involved in and supportive of both President Obama and Biden’s Middle East policies, the citizens of our commonwealth have a right to know where you stand on this issue. Iran must not get access to this $6 billion of funds,” Mccormick wrote.

McCormick also called on Biden to “fully implement U.S. sanctions on Iran, especially on its energy sector, to force Tehran to make difficult decisions about support to its terrorist proxies.”

“Israel is one of America’s greatest allies, and we must stand with them against the Iranian-backed terrorist groups that seek its destruction,” McCormick concluded. “In this time of crisis, I hope you can join me in calling for actions that will help degrade Israel’s enemies and advance our own national security. Due to the urgency of the request, please provide an immediate response.”

Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.