{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://byrne.house.gov/media-center/columns/no-more-ransom-payments-to-iran", "No More Ransom Payments to Iran", "2016-09-25", "2016", "2016-09", "Republican", "House", "AL", "Bradley Byrne", "B001289", "byrne.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "On June 24, 2015, President Obama stood in the Roosevelt Room of the White House and said \u201cI am reaffirming that the United States government will not make concessions, such as paying ransom, to terrorist groups holding American hostages.\u201d\nThis position shouldn\u2019t have been too surprising because it has long been the position of the U.S. government to not pay ransoms to terrorist organizations or groups. The reasoning behind this is that paying ransoms just further encourages kidnappings and puts more Americans at risk.\nDespite this reassurance, on January 17, 2016, an unmarked cargo plane landed at a European airport. On this plane were wooden pallets stacked with unmarked, foreign currency\u2013 $400 million worth to be exact. Who was waiting at the airport to accept this money? The Islamic Republic of Iran.\nOn the same day this payment occurred, several Americans who had been held prisoner in Iran were released. This was clearly a ransom payment and broke the decades old policy of the United States not paying ransom.\nMaking matters worse, the payments did not stop there. All told, the United States paid Iran $1.7 billion. The money was related to a decades old dispute about an Iranian arms sale, but the payment was clearly related tied to the release of U.S. prisoners.\nI have a slew of concerns with this ransom payment.\nFirst, by giving money to Iran, the United States is supporting the world\u2019s leading state sponsor of terrorism. Iran has a clear track record of supporting terrorist groups like Hezbollah and Hamas. Iran is clearly no friend of the United States or our allies.\nSecond, the United States should never pay a ransom \u2013 and this payment was clearly ransom. Some in the Obama Administration claimed the payment was just a \u201csettlement.\u201d If that was the case, then why was the payment made the same day the prisoners were released?\nIranian officials have said the payment was a ransom. In fact, an Iranian general is quoted as saying that \u201cthe money was returned for the freedom of the U.S. spy and it was not related to the [nuclear] negotiations.\u201d\nOn top of that, an official with President Obama\u2019s Justice Department raised concerns that the cash payment to Iran would send a signal that the United States had changed our policy on paying ransom. This isn\u2019t some conspiracy theory. The fact that this was a ransom payment has been confirmed by Obama Administration officials.\nThe third major concern I have with the ransom payment is that it was made in cash. The payment could have been done by a wire transfer, which would have made it easier to track what Iran does with the money.\nGiven Iran\u2019s history of money laundering, the cash payment is especially concerning. According to an international body responsible for combating money laundering known as the Financial Action Task Force, the \u201cphysical transportation of currency\u201d is \u201cone of the main methods used to move criminal assets, launder money and finance terrorism.\u201d\nGiven all of these concerns, I am pleased to report that last week the House of Representatives passed a bill with bipartisan support that would prohibit any future ransom payments to Iran.\nOur bill would also require a 30-day Congressional notification and review of any future settlements related to the U.S. Iran Claims Tribunal. This way Congress will have an opportunity to review any future payments.\nUltimately, we need to stop empowering Iran and instead start weakening them. By putting our foot down, the American people and our allies in the Middle East will be safer and stronger.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://byrne.house.gov/media-center/columns/no-more-ransom-payments-to-iran"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0209870524704456, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}