Kerry to Iran: Don't worry, we'll just waive new visa restrictions if they're a problem for you

Remember Obama's forgettable Sunday night address about how he's already doing all the right things to ISIS and we should all stop hating on Muslims? Yeah, I know, it was hard to get through. But if you did, one thing you might recall that had the appearance of substance was his mention of the Visa Waiver Program, which he said was being tightened up so it wouldn't be so easy for people coming through terror-connected countries to enter the U.S. with just a passport. One of the countries affected by the change, for what I'd think would be obvious reasons, was Iran. It was not an all-out travel ban on people coming from Iran, but raather the removal of a shortcut that was making it far too easy for people coming from Iran to bypass the usual visa process.

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While only a small step, this might have been seen as one of the few examples of anything Obama said that night that would represent something positive. But what the appearance of hope giveth, Obama and John Kerry taketh away. The change in the Visa Waiver Program brought an immediate complaint from Iran, which is oh-so-concerned about any violation of the Iran Nuclear Deal (when it's not busy testing missiles, that is), and that put Kerry in a position of choosing between taking a tough line on terrorism or giving in to his best friends the mad mullahs. I'll give you three guesses which one he did, and the first two don't count. Because this is John Kerry we're talking about, so what else would you expect?

His Excellency Mohammad Javad Zarif Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran Tehran Dear Mr. Minister: Thanks for a constructive meeting yesterday. I wanted to get back to you in response to your inquiry about amendments to our Visa Waiver Program. First, I want to confirm to you that we remain fully committed to the sanctions lifting provided for under the JCPOA. We will adhere to the full measure of our commitments, per the agreement. Our team is working hard to be prepared and as soon as we reach implementation day we will lift appropriate sanctions.

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I am also confident that the recent changes in visa requirements passed in Congress, which the Administration has the authority to waive, will not in any way prevent us from meeting our JCPOA commitments, and that we will implement them so as not to interfere with legitimate business interests of Iran. To this end, we have a number of potential tools available to us, including multiple entry ten-year business visas, programs for expediting business visas, and the waiver authority provided under the new legislation. I am happy to discuss this further and provide any additional clarification. Secretary of State John Kerry

Shorthand John Kerry: We made sure this bill was worded in a way that we wouldn't actually have to do any of it, and trust us, we won't. I suppose it should surprise no one that Kerry would take this stance toward Iran. He never met an enemy of America he wasn't willing to cozy up to, and he always errs on the side of concession rather than strength. But this does leave me wondering why the bill was written in a way that granted that type of waiver authority to the administration. Did the Republicans not seriously think Obama and Kerry would use it in this way? Now they're left - as is so often the case with this president and this Congress - to howl about it helplessly after the fact:

The legislation indeed includes a provision allowing the Homeland Security secretary to waive the requirements if the secretary determines this “is in the law enforcement or national security interests of the United States.” But House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., voiced concern on Monday that Kerry was proposing a “blanket” waiver to accommodate Iran’s complaints. He said that is not Congress’ intent. “Contrary to what the Secretary of State seems to be saying to Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, it was not and has never been Congress’s intent to allow the Administration to grant a blanket waiver to travellers from Iran in order to facilitate the implementation of the Iran deal,” he said in a statement. McCarthy said the point of the legislation was to strengthen security and “keep the American people safe from terrorism and from foreign travelers who potentially pose a threat to our homeland.” Kerry’s assurances also raised concerns that the U.S. may be backing down to Iran’s complaints while at the same time reluctant to punish Tehran for its own potential violations. “Instead of undermining Congressional intent regarding the visa waiver program, the White House should instead focus on Iran’s repeated violations of the U.N. Security Council's bans on missile tests,” McCarthy said. “Iran’s unwillingness to follow these international agreements should be a red flag that the Iran nuclear deal isn’t worth the paper it is written on.”

Of course the deal isn't worth the paper it's written on. In order for it to be worth anything, it would have to be submitted to the Senate and ratified as a treaty. Obama will never do that, so the deal represents nothing more than Obama's personal commitment to keep the U.S. commitments under the deal even as Iran wantonly violates its own. And if America's need to protect its citizens against terrorism comes into conflict with Obama's promise to the mullahs, how do Obama and Kerry break the tie? Come on. That's not even hard. We all know what these guys are made of by now. And sadly, so do our enemies, who take full advantage on a regular basis.

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