Biden Gives Iran Access To $6 Billion In Prisoner Swap

The Biden administration has signed off on a deal to release five Iranian prisoners and $6 billion in frozen assets in exchange for five Americans held captive in Iran.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken approved the deal last week, and Congress was notified Monday as lawmakers and officials honored the 22nd anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks, according to the Associated Press.

In exchange for the prisoners, the United States will issue a waiver for banks in South Korea and Qatar to allow Iran access to billions of dollars without fear of violating U.S. sanctions. The funds will be transferred to Qatar’s central bank where the Iranian government can make requests to pay for humanitarian goods out of the account.

Iran is a prolific state sponsor of terrorism hampered by strict U.S. sanctions since former President Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018. Trump scrapped the deal over concerns that the agreement would allow Iran to construct a nuclear weapon.

The Biden administration has tried to revive the Iran nuclear deal, but negotiations have been tabled for months. The White House has prioritized thawing relations with Iran to restore the agreement, and the prisoner swap may be an attempt by both sides at some de-escalation.

News of the finalized deal comes as Biden delivered comments on the anniversary of 9-11 from Alaska. During his remarks, the president claimed that he visited Ground Zero the day after the Twin Towers fell.

“Ground Zero in New York — I remember standing there the next day and looking at the building. I felt like I was looking through the gates of hell, it looked so devastating,” Biden said.

BIDEN: "Ground Zero in New York — I remember standing there the next day and looking at the building. I felt like I was looking through the gates of hell."

On September 12, 2001, Biden was in Washington, D.C., for a Senate session. pic.twitter.com/vUyu63KXcV

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 11, 2023

The president has taken criticism for jetting to Alaska and forgoing 9-11 ceremonies in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C. Former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik called Biden’s absence from the services “disgusting.”

“I think it’s disgusting. I got to be honest, I was disgusted with the fact that Biden wasn’t going to be there or attend any ceremony whether it was New York, Shanksville, D.C., Pentagon,” Kerik said, according to Just The News.

WH Blows Off Critics After Biden Skips 9/11 Memorials: Presidents Weren’t Going To Pearl Harbor After 22 Years

The White House appeared to blow off criticisms after President Joe Biden became the first sitting U.S. President to not make an appearance at any of the official memorial sites on September 11: Ground Zero in New York City, the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania — the place where passengers brought down hijacked United Flight 93.

President Biden, who was on his return trip from Vietnam, opted instead to stop in Alaska to commemorate the 22nd anniversary of the worst terrorist attacks ever executed on American soil. Vice President Kamala Harris made the trip to Ground Zero in his place.

Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy said that he asked why the president had chosen not to be present at one of the major memorials himself — and the administration had responded with an analogy.

WATCH:

.@pdoocy asked the White House why POTUS is not in NYC on 9/11.

DOOCY: "The analogy that I was given is that 22 years after Pearl Harbor, U.S. Presidents were not still going to visit Hawaii."

Wow… pic.twitter.com/KcfD7lf3sz

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 11, 2023

“Our focus the last couple of days has been President Biden, here in South Asia,” Doocy explained. “And when I asked a White House official why it is that President Biden was here and missed the 9/11 commemorations at the attack sites, the analogy that I was given is that 22 years after Pearl Harbor, U.S. Presidents were not still going to visit Hawaii.”

But presidents have continued to visit Pearl Harbor on December 7, although not every year. The late President George H.W. Bush, who served in the Pacific Theater himself, was on hand for the 50th anniversary of the surprise attack in 1991.

Someone tell @WhiteHouse comms that Bush 41 was onsite on the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor https://t.co/3PbE4W9VV1 pic.twitter.com/oXz0N5Rf3l

— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) September 11, 2023

“FFS, GHWB was at Pearl Harbor for the 50th anniversary in 1991. FDR was at Gettysburg for the 75th anniversary in 1938. These places don’t stop being important,” Judianna posted via X.

FFS, GHWB was at Pearl Harbor for the 50th anniversary in 1991.

FDR was at Gettysburg for the 75th anniversary in 1938.

These places don't stop being important. https://t.co/XghPsB4IfJ

— Judianna (@Judianna) September 11, 2023

To make matters worse for the White House, several pointed out the fact that the 22nd anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack — December 7, 1963 — fell just weeks after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. JFK, a U.S. Navy veteran, had visited the memorial six months earlier in June of that year.

Uh, presidents WERE still visiting Hawaii 22 years after Pearl Harbor. Here is JFK doing just that: https://t.co/01QlQNKgkz
h/t @thekytikat https://t.co/LzXOHPRkXw

— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) September 11, 2023

 

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