GOP Senators Push Biden-Harris Admin To Expose Iranian Election Interference Plot
Senate Republicans are pushing legislation that would force the Biden-Harris administration to disclose all it knows about an Iranian influence campaign that is fomenting anti-Israel unrest across America with the aim of swaying November’s election results, according to a copy of the measure obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
The legislation, helmed by Sen. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.), would compel Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Avril Haines to produce a report revealing the "interference by the Islamic Republic of Iran in United States domestic politics" dating back to Oct. 7, when Hamas carried out its unprecedented terror assault on Israel.
The bill comes on the heels of a bombshell Monday disclosure by Haines's office, which revealed that Iran is engaged in a sophisticated effort to harm former president Donald Trump's campaign and otherwise "influence the presidential election" through "vast webs of online personas and propaganda mills." Haines disclosed earlier this month that Iran is paying anti-Israel operatives to protest in America as part of the foreign influence operation.
Cotton’s bill—dubbed the Unmasking Networks of Virtual Election Interference and Lies (UNVEIL) Act—suggests the Biden-Harris administration has not been forthcoming with lawmakers about the full scale of Tehran’s operations. The senator says legislation is necessary to force administration officials into publicly revealing everything they know about Tehran’s plot.
"The Biden-Harris Administration’s weakness has emboldened and enriched Iran. It’s no wonder that the ayatollahs prefer four more years of appeasement," Cotton said in a statement. "Americans deserve to know the extent to which Iran is interfering in our election against President Trump."
The bill would require the DNI to publicly provide a list of all social media accounts run by Iran, a description of protesters to whom Iran has given financial support, and a rundown on all Iran-led email campaigns targeting the U.S. government and voters. The DNI’s report must also include "a description of which entities within the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran are involved" in the influence operation.
Iran is believed to be specifically interested in avoiding "an outcome they perceive would increase tensions with the United States," according to a Monday briefing by U.S. intelligence officials on the election meddling campaign.
Earlier this month, the DNI revealed that Tehran is funding anti-Israel demonstrations in America as part of its efforts to sway the upcoming election. The disclosure, however, left lawmakers such as Cotton with more questions than answers.
"Iran is becoming increasingly aggressive in their foreign influence efforts, seeking to stoke discord and undermine confidence in our democratic institutions, as we have seen them do in the past, including in prior election cycles," Haines said in a rare public statement issued on July 9.
"They continue to adapt their cyber and influence activities, using social media platforms and issuing threats. It is likely they will continue to rely on their intelligence services in these efforts, as well as Iran-based online influencers, to promote their narratives."
"Iranian government actors," the statement continued, "have sought to opportunistically take advantage of ongoing protests regarding the war in Gaza, using a playbook we’ve seen other actors use over the years. We have observed actors tied to Iran’s government posing as activists online, seeking to encourage protests, and even providing financial support to protesters."
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