J Street’s Iranian connections
Feb 5th, 2014Iranian American Forum, February 5, 2014
Since 2008, J Street has been a member of the coalition that lobbies for friendlier policy with Iran and opposes sanctions. NIAC coordinates this coalition. Government press in Tehran calls NIAC “the Iran lobby in the US”. Court documents obtained during a defamation lawsuit show that one of coalition partners coordinated its lobby with Ahmadinejad’s office
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On January 14, 2014 a coalition of religious, peace and Jewish organizations including J Street sent a letter to the Senate and declared their support to the White House policy toward Iran and opposed the adoption of new sanctions. The coordinator of this coalition is the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), a Washington-based organization that lobbies for a friendlier policy with Iran and opposes economic sanctions. The government press in Tehran calls NIAC the “Iran lobby in US.”
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz has published a praiseful report about this coalition and wrote:
“A loose coalition of advocacy groups and policy experts, including a pair of dovish Jewish organizations, have been coordinating messaging in support of the Obama administration’s Iran strategy.
The coalition was convened by the Ploughshares Fund, which advocates for a nuclear-free world. Coalition participants — J Street and Americans for Peace Now, among them — have been in touch through email exchanges and conference calls since September, when it emerged that the Obama administration was advancing toward talks with Iran over its nuclear program.
A focus for the coalition has been opposing new sanctions under consideration in the Senate that the Obama administration says could scuttle the talks. Congressional staffers on both sides of the issue say that opposition to the sanctions has been intense and that lobbying and advocacy by the groups was likely a factor. On at least one occasion, White House officials briefed the groups about the Iran talks in a bid to spread the administration’s message through their network.”
A series of documents obtained during a defamation lawsuit in Washington show that the coalition was created during Bush administration and was influential in preventing meaningful sanctions against Iran and neutralizing the US administration’s efforts that could curb Iran’s nuclear program. This coalition has been led by J Street’s main Iranian partner called NIAC.
Background on NIAC, the defamation lawsuit and NIAC’s internal documents
The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) is a Washington-based grassroots lobbying organization that was founded by its president Trita Parsi in 2002. NIAC lobbies for a friendlier policy with Iran and opposes economic sanctions. NIAC maintains an active presence in Washington D.C., particularly working to influence members of Congress and the White House on their opinions about Iran. The government press in Tehran calls NIAC the “Iran lobby in US.” Many within Iranian-American community consider NIAC to be a de-facto lobby for the Iranian regime.
In 2008 NIAC and its president Trita Parsi brought a defamation lawsuit against one of its critics to break him under financial burdens of the lawsuit and as a result, silence all other critics. The lawsuit obliged NIAC to release part of its internal documents that revealed the organization’s toes to Tehran and some of its illicit activities.
On September 13, 2012 U.S. District Judge John Bates dismissed the lawsuit and in a second ruling, sanctioned NIAC and Trita Parsi for discovery abuses including false declaration to the court and ordered them to pay $184000 for defendant’s legal expenses. (Read More: NIAC lost defamation lawsuit and was punished for legal abuses)
Some of these documents are posted here and show NIAC’s relation and collaboration with Iranian officials and business interests inside Iran. They show that NIAC coordinated its lobby with Iranian ambassador to the UN to influence US policy with Iran.
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The anti-sanction and pro-Tehran coalition
The anti-sanction coalition was created in 2005-2006 during Bush administration and J Street joined it in 2008. Following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, the anti-war movement and opposition to George Bush’s policy in the Middle East gained support in the US. In 2005, after Ahmadinejad became president, Iran resumed its nuclear activities and the hostilities between Iran and the West increased. In 2005-2006 a number of anti-war groups came together to fight Bush’s policy toward Iran and prevent a new war in the region. NIAC’s internal documents suggest that NIAC joined this coalition and gradually shifted its focus toward fighting the sanctions on Iran.
Several email exchanges between Parsi and his Tehran based lobby partner Siamak Namazi shed light on the creation and activities of this coalition. Namazi was the director of Atieh, a business conglomerate in Tehran with diverse activities that help foreign companies do business in Iran, acts as intermediary between the company and the government, maintains close ties with the regime and has multiple joint ventures with the government. (Read more: Atieh Group in Iran and relation with Iranian regime)
In 2007 Parsi sent a report to Siamak Namazi and explained the activities of this coalition and how it should be morphed to an anti-sanction lobby. The report is titled the “lobby groups”:
“As of early 2005, Washington’s heated rhetoric over Iran has attracted the attention of a variety of interest groups eager to prevent the escalation of tensions in the Middle East and the prospects of a war between the US and Iran. These groups have managed to build unprecedented support in Congress in favor of dialogue and against military action among progressive Democrats as well as conservative Republicans on Capitol Hill.
This coalition of pro-dialogue and anti-war entities consists of a diverse group of organizations ranging from arms control organizations, to Iranian American organizations, to religious groups. Key players in this coalition are the Center for Arms Control and Nonproliferation, which coordinates a coalition of approximately 50 organizations, MoveOn and the National Iranian American Council.
While these groups have focused extensively on passing measures to reduce the risk for war with Iran, little attention has been paid to efforts to intensify sanctions against Iran. Furthermore, while a momentum exists for anti-war measures, no comparable opportunity exists currently for an anti-sanctions campaign. Nor is the coalition of disarmament, religious and progressive groups best suited to take on this issue. Here, the absence of pro-business interests on Capitol Hill active constitutes a key point of advantage for AIPAC…
However, initial efforts are currently being made to make align the trade groups with the pro-dialogue coalition and frame sanctions an initial step that invariably will lead to war. If such a coalition of pro-trade and pro-dialogue groups can be formed, the current momentum for sanctions may be significantly hampered.
Conclusion: The balance of power on Capitol Hill is currently shifted in favor of sanctions on Iran but against military action. AIPAC continues to seek both military strikes against Iran and draconian sanctions and has benefited from the absence of active lobbying by pro-trade groups. A change in heart by pro-trade coalitions may significantly hamper efforts to have Congress impose new draconian sanctions on Iran. This is great significance since Congressional sanctions are far more difficult to undo than those imposed by the Executive Branch.”
A year later in 2008, Open Society supported NIAC to become the coordinator of this coalition that started to operate as the “Campaign for new American policy with Iran” (CNAPI). The coalition included USA*Engage (pro-trade lobby, representing large US corporations), Open Society, J Street, peace and religious groups. (See some of CNAPI’s documents here.)
CNAPI, the center of gravity on Iran issue
On December 18, 2008, shortly after Obama’s election, representatives of some 20 groups participated in CNAPI’s monthly meeting to discuss their lobby efforts to influence US policy with Iran. During the meeting, the coordinator of coalition declared that the group was the “center of gravity on Iran issue” in the Congress.
An episode that showed CANAPI’s influence, was its successful lobby to prevent the nomination of Dennis Ross by President Obama as the Iran envoy in the State Department. The coalition prevented Ross’s nomination considered to be hawkish against Iran and finally, John Limbert, close to CNAPI and a member of NIAC advisory board took office as the senior Iran official at the State Department.
In a May 2008 memo, discussing CNAPI’s recommendation policy paper for US administration, the coalition partners opposed to include the issue of human rights violations in Iran because “the language might make it more difficult for the Campaign members who have developed and maintain contacts with government officials inside of Iran.”
The coalition ceased to operate under CNAPI appellation but the members have continued to work together and the recent letter sent to the Senate is the latest example of this continuation.
Some of CNAPI’s documents obtained during the lawsuit are posted at the end of this report.
List of CNAPI partners in 2009 including I Street
J Street’s coalition partners worked for Ahmadinejad’s office
Since 2008, one of the key member of CNAPI is Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) that also signed the recent letter to the Senate. FOR and Iranian regime have co-organized tens of “US peace delegations” that brought hundreds of activists to Iran to meet with Iranian officials and upon their return, many of them were recruited by NIAC to lobby for a friendlier policy toward Iran. (Read the report: “Relation and cooperation between Iranian regime and American anti-war groups”)
Public documents and NIAC’s internal documents show clearly that two of CNAPI members, FOR’s Iran director Leila Zand and CASMII, worked for Ahmadinejad’s office. In 2010, after the Iranian popular uprising and the regime’s brutal crackdown, Ahmadinejad government organized a three day conference in Tehran for the Iranian expatriates and foreign guests to display their support to the regime.
Leila Zand and another CNAPI member CASMII, coordinated with Ahmadinejad’s office to bring foreign guests to Iran in support of Iranian regime. They were also among the key speakers of the event. Public documents posted by Ahmadinejad’s office show that CASMII and FOR hosted two of the event’s workshops which discussed practical ways to “defend Iran” and oppose “US pressure against Iran.” (Watch also “Iranian regime runs anti-AIPAC crusade”.)
J Street’s main Iranian partner
NIAC is J Street’s main partner on Iran issue. They have been collaborationg on Iran issues for the past six years, J Street director Jeremy Ben-Ami has co-authored an op-ed with Trita Parsi and J Street has invited Parsi to speak at their.
NIAC is considered by many Iranians to be Tehran’s lobby in Washington. Court documents show that NIAC defrauded IRS, lied to the court, defrauded NED Congressional funds, coordinated its lobby with Iranian ambassador to the UN and collaborated with two individuals named by US Congressional report as the agents of the Iranian intelligence ministry.
Court documents show that in 2002-2003, while president of NIAC, Parsi profited from his presence inside Congress and his close relationship with Congressman Bob Ney to prepare reports about the latest developments regarding Iran and sent these reports to Atieh Company in Tehran. Atieh paid Trita Parsi for his work. Parsi continued to send reports about his lobby activities to Atieh director in Tehran. (Read more: “NIAC’s partners in Iran: Iran’s economic mafia and regime associates”)
Leila Zand, a key member of coalition speaking with Ahmadinejad September 2008
Atieh Group is a business conglomerate that helps foreign companies do business in Iran, acts as intermediary between the company and the government, maintains close ties with the regime and has multiple joint ventures with the government. (Read more: Atieh Group in Iran and relation with Iranian regime)
While NIAC tries to present itself as a defender of dialogue and peace, the review of its internal documents released during the lawsuit show that its lobby has always been about business and opening up trade between US and Iran. The peace mantle is just a disguise and human face for his lobby. In 2002, when Parsi founded NIAC he wrote a memo to his partner and Washington lobbyist Roy Coffee and explained the real nature of his lobby and why this lobby should get a “human face”:
“Although the mission of the proposed lobby should be to improve relations between the US and Iran and open up opportunities for trade, the initial targets should be less controversial issues such as visas and racial profiling/discrimination… Despite its predominantly business oriented constituency, it is essential that the lobby creates a “human face” for its aims and goals. AIPAC successfully painted the opponents of the Iran Libya Sanctions Act as “greedy businessmen who had no scruples when it came to doing business with terrorist regimes.” The oil companies failed to characterize their campaign with “human concern for the well-being of innocent Iranians stuck with a dictatorial regime” or “support for the poor mid-Western family father who lost his job due the sanctions. The human element is essential both when it comes to attracting support among Iranian-Americans and when it comes to winning the debate and the votes on the Hill.”
Appendix One: Coalition lobby to prevent nomination of Dennis Ross
On January 7, 2009 that is before Obama entered the White House, Patrick Disney (a NIAC employee) who coordinates CNAPI lobby emailed to his partners and wrote:
“As the rumors appear to be more substantiated by the hour, I think we should start a conversation about what our response will be if Dennis Ross is named Iran envoy… NIAC is obviously still formulating a plan, but we’re exploring the idea of coming out publicly, and relatively strongly, against Ross.”
A few hours later, Parsi entered the discussion and wrote:
“Just to add to Patrick’s points: Coming out strongly against him will likely also make it more difficult for him to go the neo-con way. The pressure should be on him. He is so obviously conflicting with Obama’s views so we could make that very clear – criticize him, without criticizing Obama. Also, by being on record now, we protect ourselves for the time when Ross does screw up – then our criticism will be consistent with what we’ve said all along, and will be able to defend ourselves against any attacks that our views on Ross may resemble Tehran’s.”
Two days later, Disney recapped the partners’ conference call on how to block Ross’s nomination and wrote:
“It’s not necessary that we all act with one voice on this–in fact it may be more useful to have a “division of labor.” Those groups that feel comfortable being more aggressive in opposing Ross publicly (possibly Voters for Peace, FCNL, Physicians for Social Responsibility, others) will do so, while others who may have less latitude on the matter will declare their preference for a more agreeable envoy (Dobbins or Pickering).”
Strategy: Create a media controversy. Press releases, op-eds, letters to the editor, blog posts, articles, etc. should be distributed to make this a very public controversy. Reach out to media contacts. Also explore option of submitting questions for confirmation hearings. (Clinton: 1/13 and 1/15. Susan Rice possibly 1/16).”
On January 21, Disney reported:
“Rumors abound that George Mitchell might be MidEast envoy instead of Ross. Still no official word that there even will be an envoy to Iran, but this is encouraging. Ross has become a controversial pick–we should continue this line of discussion and sow the seeds of doubt in Ross’ appointment for Iran envoy”.
On January 23, he reiterated his demand to maintain the anti-Ross campaign:
“I think it’s important that we not let up on our campaign to raise concerns about Ross serving in any capacity involving Iran in the Obama administration. There is still time to prevent his appointment.”
Finally, Ross was not appointed as Iran envoy and was given a low profile job at the State Department before joining Obama in the White House. Meanwhile, few months later, another man took office as the senior Iran official at the State Department. He is John Limbert, who till then served on advisory board of NIAC, the same organization that orchestrated the anti-Ross campaign.
Appendix Two: Some of the documents obtained during the discovery process in the defamation lawsuit by NIAC against Hassan Daioleslam
• Request for meeting with Obama transition team
• Talking point on Dennis Ross
• Memo before March 2009 meeting
• Notes before meeting, December 2008
• Notes from January 2008 meeting
• Notes for February 8th, 2008 meeting
• February 2008 meeting
• Meeting notes, December 2008 meeting:
• Notes from lobby day
• Damage control for Ahmadinejad’s visit to New York
