No, people. No. Senator Clinton did not vote to go to war with Iran. But her vote today was indeed a monumental move that I know will need to think about for a while before truly understanding the implications.
In a nutshell: Clinton voted in the majority today for the Kyl-Lideberman Amndment, which designates Iran's Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization under Executive Order 13224. In effect, this:
...provides a means by which to disrupt the financial support network for terrorists and terrorist organizations by authorizing the U.S. government to designate and block the assets of foreign individuals and entities that commit, or pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism...In short, the Revolutionary Guard is now included on the list of individuals and organizations indentified by Executive Order 13224. Of course, what makes this a flaming ball of controversy is the fact that Iran's Revolutionary Guard is now the first and only official armed unit of a sovereign state to be included on the list of banned terrorist groups. Quite obviously, this complicates diplomacy. (Understatement?)
To block the assets of individuals and entities that provide support, services, or assistance to, or otherwise associate with, terrorists and terrorist organizations designated under the Order, as well as their subsidiaries, front organizations, agents, and associates. (Wiki)
Beyond that, I don't have much to say. I'm not informed enough on the issue and potential implications. But at the very least I thought this would be an important item to mention on the blog and hopefully get some input/debate/stream-of-consciousness-type discussion on the issue. Let me know what you think.
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