Senior political and security officials are demanding answers about the Biden administration’s special envoy for Iran allegedly mishandling classified documents.
President Biden’s special envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, has been stripped of his security clearance and placed on unpaid leave until an investigation is completed.
Malley has been accused of granting wide-ranging concessions to Iran’s regime as part of a planned nuclear deal. The slated accord could provide as much as $17 billion in sanctions relief to Iran in exchange for temporary restrictions on its alleged nuclear weapons program.
Malley has been accused of granting wide-ranging concessions to Iran’s regime as part of a planned nuclear deal.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) tweeted, “This situation with Malley makes it more important than ever for Congress to scrutinize & weigh in on the secret ‘deal’ he is putting together with Iran.”
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, noted: “While the suspension of Special Envoy Malley’s clearance is independently troubling, our concern is compounded by the State Department’s failure to respond to the Committee’s efforts to conduct oversight of its negotiations with and policy toward Iran. Since April 11, 2023, the Committee has repeatedly requested Special Envoy Malley’s testimony, which the Department has not fulfilled, despite Special Envoy Malley’s numerous press engagements dating back to May 30, 2023.”
Malley has also long advocated normalizing relations with a number of state sponsors of terrorism. According to a 2006 Time magazine piece, he wrote, “Today the U.S. does not talk to Iran, Syria, Hamas, the elected Palestinian government or Hezbollah.... The result has been a policy with all the appeal of a moral principle and all the effectiveness of a tired harangue.”
Malley confirmed that his clearance is being investigated, but said he was confident about a positive outcome.
“I have been informed that my security clearance is under review. I have not been provided any further information, but I expect the investigation to be resolved favorably and soon. In the meantime, I am on leave,” Malley told Fox News.
Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN) issued a Twitter thread with questions about Malley’s alleged misconduct and when Biden and Blinken first had knowledge of the accusations against the special envoy.
Malley has also long advocated normalizing relations with a number of state sponsors of terrorism.
Hagerty also asked, “Why did they allow Malley to continue in his diplomatic role while under investigation?”
The Tennessee senator further wrote, “Malley’s contacts with Hamas & other extremist groups raised concerns in the past. Knowing his background & views, why did @Potus and & @SecBlinken select Malley for this sensitive position in the first place?”
United Against Nuclear Iran chairman, former Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman, and its CEO, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace, said following the Malley suspension, “The status quo of allowing the executive branch to direct Iran policy on its own and in a partisan manner has been a slow-rolling disaster for nearly a decade. This can be a turning point if Congress asserts itself and exercises its authority on a bipartisan basis, and we urge both parties to recognize the gravity of the situation and act accordingly.”
Speaking at the National Council of Resistance in Iran’s conference in Paris on the weekend, former U.S. national security adviser John Bolton said of Malley, “I’ve searched my memory for a case in our history where a senior diplomatic official of the United States has found himself in that position. And I can’t think of a single case.”
Alinejad and other anti-Iranian regime activists claim Malley “is misrepresenting the nature of the protests” against Iran’s regime and “pushing for negotiations with the Islamic Republic.”
The growing criticism of Malley could add momentum to the campaign launched by an Iranian American human rights activist, Masih Alinejad, to force the U.S. State Department to remove Malley as special envoy. Alinjed’s petition campaign has secured 136,475 signatures since it was started in October.
Alinejad and other anti-Iranian regime activists claim Malley “is misrepresenting the nature of the protests” against Iran’s regime and “pushing for negotiations with the Islamic Republic.” After Iran’s infamous morality police reportedly tortured and murdered the 22-year-old Masha Amini for not covering her hair properly with a hijab, mass protests gripped the country that started in September.
The U.S.-based organization National Union for Democracy in Iran said in a statement that it “led the charge against Mr. Malley’s appointment from the beginning. So where the political will was lacking to take action against Mr. Malley’s indefensible policies, we hope a legal investigation and the rule of law will finally force action to be taken, if indefensible conduct is proven to have taken place.”
