Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR)
The open letter to Iran signed by 47 Senate Republicans and spearheaded by Sen. Tom Cotton has drawn harsh criticism from
newspapers around the country. The
German foreign minister has pointed out that "This is no small matter we’re talking about ... This is not just an issue of American domestic politics." Quite a few
Republican insiders are unhappy about it, and even some of the senators who signed it are expressing regrets, albeit
bizarre ones. But as for the Arkansas Republican who
led the charge, he:
... told CBS’s “Face the Nation” Sunday that he has “no regrets at all” and accused President Obama of “not negotiating for the hardest deal possible.”
Of course, in the same interview, Cotton
also had this to say:
“Moreover, we have to stand up to Iran’s attempts to drive for regional dominance,” he continued. “They already control Tehran and, increasingly, they control Damascus and Beirut and Baghdad. And now, Sana’a as well.”
"They already control Tehran." Is this the first time a country's control of its own capital city has been taken as evidence that it is driving for regional dominance and must be stopped? WTF. "We have to stand up to France's attempts to drive for regional dominance. They already control Paris ..."
And this guy is leading almost all of the Republicans in the Senate on how to approach dealings with Iran. Leading them, apparently, into outrage over Iran having control of its own capital.