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Two congressional bills were also discussed:
- HR 1905: Iran Threat Reduction Act of 2011 "(t)o strengthen Iran sanctions law for the purpose of compelling Iran to abandon its pursuit of nuclear weapons and other threatening activities, and for other purposes."
Introduced on May 13, it was reported to the House Foreign Affairs Committee. So far, no further action was taken.
- S. 1048: Iran, North Korea, and Syria Sanctions Consolidate Act of 2011 "to expand sanctions with respect to the Islamic Republic of Iran, North Korea, and Syria, and for other purposes."
Introduced on May 23, it was referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on October 13. So far, no further action was taken.
Sanctions alone don't start wars. However, these bills edge closer. Provisions prohibit official and unofficial contact unless doing so harms US interests. Of course, laws don't deter actions, and these haven't yet passed.
America's 1917 Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA) is still law. One of its provisions states that in times of war or national emergency, presidents may:
<blockquote>"investigate, regulate, direct and compel, nullify, void, prevent or prohibit, any acquisition, holding, withholding, use, transfer, withdrawal, transportation, importation or exportation of, or dealing in, or exercising any right, power, or privilege with respect to, or transactions involving, any property in which any foreign country or a national thereof has any interest by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States."</blockquote>
In other words, TWEA authorizes sanctions to prohibit commerce and other relations with enemies. Nonetheless, during WW II, major US corporations traded freely with Nazi Germany. Roosevelt officials knew it. Charles Higham documented it in his book titled, "Trading with the Enemy."
Among others, IBM, General Motors, Ford, DuPont, Standard Oil, Alcoa, Kodak, Coca-Cola, and Chase Bank (now JPMorgan Chase) traded with Nazi Germany during WW II - a real enemy, not a fabricated one like Iran.
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