Robert Gover wrote the cult classic One Hundred Dollar Misunderstanding. It might have been cutting-edge in 1962, when it was published, but not for long. Insofar as my subject here is related to President Biden, I can note that Hunter Biden’s misadventures have taken reality far beyond Gover’s satire.
However, I have found Gover’s title an irresistible source of headlines for comments on the news. Today comes word via the New York Times that the Biden administration has entered into a $6 billion arrangement with Iran for the return of five imprisoned Americans. Fox News has posted an accessible story on the arrangement here.
That’s quite an increase over the $400 million non-signing bonus and future considerations (more money) that the Obama administration paid the Iranian regime for the return of four American prisoners and entry into the JCPOA. The astronomical increase might be a case of Bidenomics in action or just a deeper descent into national abasement.
The Biden line is that the funds are to be limited to humanitarian purposes. They don’t think we might have some idea that cash is fungible and will free up an equivalent amount of the regime’s resources for its evil purposes.
The Times quotes Ali Vaez, “the Iran director for the International Crisis Group, a conflict prevention organization, who is familiar with the terms of the deal.” Analyze these deep thoughts that clearly reflect the Biden administration line:
Mr. Vaez said the Treasury Department had spent many months ensuring that the funds could be used only for humanitarian purposes.
“All Iran can do under this deal is submit orders to a bank in Doha for food and medicine and a limited number of medical equipment that do not have dual military use,” Mr. Vaez said. “The bank in Doha would pay for the goods, and Qatari companies would deliver them to Iran. Iran has no direct access to the funds at all.”
“The Biden administration has a strong argument,” Mr. Vaez added. “If you are against this deal, you are against Americans coming back home, and you are against Iranian people having access to food and medicine.”
Shut up, he explained.
The arrangement also enhances the incentives for Iran to keep doing it and for others to get in the game. We apparently aren’t supposed to think about that or anything else.
In this case there is no misunderstanding at all. They think we are stupid, they have evidence to support the proposition that we are stupid, they are beyond shame, and they will do anything to cozy up with the mullahs.
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