A Petition To File Charges Over Iran Letter, Does It Have Merit?
A petition on whitehouse.gov wants charges filed against the 47 senators who sent a letter to Iran has gathered 165,000 signatures in two days.
The creator of this petition, known only by the initials C.H., alleges that the 47 senators violated the Logan Act, a 1799 law which forbids unauthorized citizens from negotiating with foreign governments. Because the petition has received over 100,000 signatures the White House is required to respond.
Matt Whitlock, Orrin Hatch’s D.C. Press Secretary, sent Gephardt Daily a recent statement as to why this petition has no validation.
“Congress has a long history of involvement in foreign affairs, sometimes expressing a difference of opinion with the President. In 1975, the State Department released a memo explicitly stating that the Logan Act does not apply to members of Congress.” Whitlock further said “The memo states: The clear intent of this provision [Logan Act] is to prohibit unauthorized persons from intervening in disputes between the United States and foreign governments. Nothing in section 953, however, would appear to restrict members of the Congress from engaging in discussions with foreign officials in pursuance of their legislative duties under the Constitution.”
He also mentioned that critics of the Iran letter should also pay attention to history. A few historical examples:
In 1975, Democratic Senators John Sparkman and George McGovern communicated directly with the government of Cuba.
In 1987, then-Speaker Jim Wright, D-Texas, participated in the mediation talks between Sandanistas and opposition contras, counter to the Reagan Admoinistration.
In 2007, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Syria to meet with the Assad regime.
In February 2009, then-Sen. John Kerry had dinner with Bashir al Assad.
Senator Hatch’s statement on the Iran letter: 
“The Framers of the Constitution were keenly aware of the risks posed by unwise agreements with foreign nations. This caution is why they endowed the Senate with its significant role in subscribing to binding international agreements. Given the disturbing reports about the Obama administration’s potential concessions to the Iranian regime, this letter expresses our intent to use Congress’s legitimate constitutional powers to ensure the national security of the United States and the safety of our allies in the region.”
Whitlock further discussed that whitehouse.gov initially started out for the good of the people, and was a great concept at the time but petitions have become incredibly frivolous and do not have a lot of meaning anymore.
Other petitions for instance that have met the White House’s response threshold include legalizingmarijuana, publishing the White House beer recipe and even deporting Justin Bieber back to Canada.
