My disagreements with President Bush are many, but he was absolutely right when he told Fox News last week that Iran is a “real threat” and part of the “axis of evil.”  The question is: beyond some strong words, where has the strong action been?

Since his election in June, the president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has publicly called for the destruction of Israel and labeled the Holocaust a myth. But before we dismiss this as the rantings of just another antagonist of Israel lets keep in mind that he has also pledged to create “a world without the United States.”  And of course there is one other not-so-little thing that makes this perhaps the world’s most serious problem: Iran will soon have a nuclear bomb.

So how do you deal with Iran?

Bring them before the UN Security Council - The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) found Iran in violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in September.  The United States should demand a UN Security Council vote on adopting the IAEA’s findings as its own.  This is the first step toward political and economic sanctions to hold Ahmadinejad accountable but hasn’t happened yet because Bush is deferring to the French, Germans and British.  The Europeans insist on more diplomacy and support a Russian proposal that would allow Iranians to have the technology for all but the final step in making a nuclear bomb. After alienating Europe over Iraq, Bush is playing international politics instead of putting security first.

Enforce existing sanctions - Bush’s State Department should enforce existing law by sanctioning foreign oil companies that invest money in Iran’s energy sector. Since 1999, at least 15 firms have invested more in Iran than the $20 million allowed under the Iran Libya Sanctions Act. Iran currently can’t meet its OPEC production quota, is producing two-thirds what it was able to produce in 1979, and has to import 40% of its gasoline.  Iran wants to increase production, but can’t do so without technology from Western and Asian oil firms.

Help the opposition - I’ve co-sponsored a bill that would not only toughen sanctions against Iran but would also provide financial assistance to groups that oppose the current Iranian regime. We don’t spend anything to encourage democracy and promote human rights in Iran, while the President’s Middle East Partnership Initiative sends money to generally friendly countries like Morocco, Qatar and Bahrain. We’ve built a bipartisan coalition of 333 Members of Congress who support the legislation, but the Administration and Republican leaders are blocking the bill from coming up for a vote.

Iran and its nascent nuclear weapons program are developing into one of the foremost threats against the United States and Israel.  It is time for the Bush administration to take action.