By Neil Vigdor
Touring Israel and the West Bank as part of a crash course on Middle East policy, Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dan Carter on Tuesday faulted the U.S. nuclear deal with Iran.
Carter, a three-term state representative from Bethel, said the fragile U.S.-Israel alliance was further undermined by President Barack Obama and fellow Democrats, such as his opponent U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., when they agreed to lift economic sanctions against Iran last year.
“(Blumenthal) and Obama made the United States one of the number one funders of terrorism,” Carter said. “That’s the bottom line. It took $500,000 to bring down the World Trade Center. Imagine what Iran is going to do with that money.”
Iran could recoup up to $150 billion in frozen assets under the deal, which requires the Islamic republic to scale back its nuclear program, reduce its uranium stockpile and give greater access to United Nations inspectors.
But Carter mounted objections to the diplomatic accord with Iran, which he said is a state sponsor of terrorism.
Blumenthal’s campaign rejected the notion he is not a friend to Israel.
“Sen. Blumenthal is a strong supporter of the state of Israel, consistently voting to strengthen Israel’s security through robust aid and military cooperation,” said Marla Romash, a Blumenthal adviser. “He helped craft crippling sanctions against Iran that led to a nuclear agreement opening Iran to inspections and keeping it from developing nuclear weapons. Vital defense and intelligence cooperation between Israel and the United States to combat terrorism in the region has never been closer.”
In a phone interview from Israel, Carter said he organized the trip to get a better sense of the geopolitical climate in the troubled region. During his visit, which has taken him from Tel Aviv to the West Bank and then Jerusalem, he said he met with members of the military and civilians. He said he had spoken to Jews and Palestinians.
“Frankly, Israel has always been our best ally here, and they’ve been a stabilizing force,” Carter said. “We’re basically throwing them under the bus.”
After weeks of deliberations and intense lobbying from both sides in the foreign policy debate, Blumenthal in September joined the other six members of Connecticut’s all-Democratic congressional in support of the deal. At the time, Blumenthal, who is Jewish, said the deal was better than no deal at all and diplomacy was better than the use of military force.
It’s not uncommon for pro-Israel lobbying groups to pay for candidates to visit the Middle East to advance their agenda. But Carter said his trip is not connected to any group and he is shouldering his travel expenses, which he estimated were $2,500 and included a guide. Carter said he had visited Israel when he served in the U.S. Air Force. neil.vigdor@scni.com; 203-625-4436; http://twitter.com/gettinviggy