However senior US lawmakers who accuse Aboutalebi of involvement in the siege are rallying around legislation to prevent him access to the UN headquarters. On Tuesday, in the wake of the Senate's endorsement of a bill that effectively targeted Aboutalebi, and as a new round of nuclear negotiations was getting underway in Vienna, Iran stood by its nomination...Yet another reason the UN should simply pack up and leave the US. Seriously. We have little cry babies running the US government.
Legislation authored by Republican senator Ted Cruz easily passed the Senate on Monday, after it received the backing of Democratic hawks such as Chuck Schumer. Cruz, a standard bearer of the rightwing of the GOP, called Iran’s nomination a “deliberate and unambiguous insult to the United States”.
“Given the larger strategic threats to the United States and our allies, represented by Iran’s nuclear ambitions, this is not the moment for diplomatic niceties,” he said. If put to the vote in the House, the bill is likely be supported by in the second chamber, however any visa ban on Aboutalebi would require the executive branch.
(17 years of informed commentary)