With my strong support, the House of Representatives yesterday passed H.R. 2194, the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act of 2009. This important legislation would direct the President to impose sanctions on all foreign firms that supply refined gasoline to Iran or help that country expand or construct oil refineries. Iran imports as much as forty percent of its domestic gasoline needs. The measure, therefore, is designed to pressure Iran to comply with the demands of the international community to abandon its pursuit of nuclear technology for hostile purposes or face serious economic consequences caused by a diminishing ability to import or produce gasoline.

The House took this critical action during the same week Secretary of State Hillary Clinton conceded that the Administration’s diplomatic outreach to Iran has thus far failed, declaring, “I don't think anyone can doubt that our outreach has produced very little in terms of any kind of a positive response from the Iranians.” Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported this week that United Nations’ nuclear experts believe Iran has “learned how to make virtually every bolt and switch in a nuclear weapon,” and that a secret Iranian memo suggests that Iran has tested the equipment necessary to initiate a nuclear bomb.

I believe the President’s yearlong diplomatic outreach, while well-intentioned, was misguided and provided Iran the opportunity to further develop their nuclear weapons program without significant fear of rebuke from the United States or the international community. Moving forward, I am hopeful that the Senate will pass the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act to further increase economic pressure on Iran. It is, however, important to note that strong, multilateral sanctions from the United Nations would be more effective in pressuring Iran to abandon its current course by crippling their energy sector. Indeed, the international community must speak with one voice to maximize the force and effectiveness of efforts to change Iran’s troubling behavior. Because China and Russia have thus far refused to impose such sanctions, I believe we must keep all options on the table in handling this clear and growing threat to U.S. security interests.