John Kerry called out for ‘shadow diplomacy’ with Iran
As the Boston Herald can attest, getting former special presidential climate envoy John Kerry to give up information is like pulling teeth.
Despite a public records request made three years ago, Kerry still refuses to tell the Herald the full details of his staff until this October. We learned in January that running his office cost some $4.3 million in pay per year, but Kerry didn’t reveal the names of any staffers.
So we wish a heartfelt good luck to the House Republicans who are demanding the ex-climate czar disclose details about his “shadow diplomacy” with Iran during the Trump administration — warning that his actions may have violated the federal Logan Act.
As the New York Post reported, five GOP lawmakers, led by Rep. Mike Waltz of Florida, sent a letter to the State Department Wednesday saying Kerry, 80, must hand over all records of his “private correspondence” with former Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif.
“It is of the utmost importance to ascertain the nature of these communications,” they wrote, according to a copy of the letter exclusively obtained by The Post. “Any discussion of sanctions imposed by President Donald Trump against Iran would present a likely violation of the Logan Act.”
The Logan Act, which dates back to 1799, prohibits citizens from unauthorized correspondence with foreign governments in a bid to influence that government’s relations or resolve disputes with the US.
You can’t go rogue as a self-appointed diplomat.
In a 2018 radio interview, Kerry admitted to having met “three or four times” with Zarif since leaving his post as President Obama’s secretary of state the year before.
“What I have done is tried to elicit from him what Iran might be willing to do in order to change the dynamic in the Middle East for the better,” Kerry said.
That would be something for Trump’s State Department to tackle.
But the “do not enter” sign doesn’t apply to Kerry, or so he assumes.
“Depending on what it involves, shadow diplomacy has also saved us from a war,” Kerry said. “If you look at 1963 (actually 1962) with the Cuban Missile Crisis, it was behind the scenes, back-channel conversation.”
Those GOP lawmakers noted in their letter that then-Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy’s negotiation efforts with the Soviet Union was another ballgame entirely.
You, Mr. Kerry, are no Robert Kennedy.
It’s not just the behind-thescenes move by Kerry, it’s who was on the other side of the table.
According to reports, Iran’s regime helped plan and signed off on the Oct. 7 terror attacks on Israel by Hamas.
“In its most recent Country Report on Terrorism for Iran, the US State Department noted that Iran continued providing weapons systems and other support to Hamas and other US-designated Palestinian terrorist groups,” the lawmakers noted.
The lawmakers are rightly concerned that should Trump return to the White House, Kerry would be back to his old tricks.
They requested that Kerry commit to standing down from his self-described “shadow diplomacy” if Trump wins in November.
“Will you commit to ceasing any backchannel communications with Iran and any other foreign government in the event of a change in administrations in November and never again advise the Iranian government on how to evade US pressure?” they asked.
The right answer for Kerry to divulge is “yes.”