Regardless of how the congressional vote on the Iran nuclear deal turns out, individual states who have imposed sanctions on companies doing business with Iran may find themselves undercut by the president's insistence that all sanctions be lifted. The former treasurer of Missouri, Sarah Steelman, penned an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal outlining how the administration could make all state laws punishing companies that do business with Iran obsolete. We are left to wonder how the Obama administration intends to proceed against these sanctions at the state level. Federal law of course pre-empts state law, but does this agreement, which still lacks congressional approval, trump state laws and constitutions? What kind of consequences might the president suggest for state officials who continue to follow the divestment and sanctions programs duly enacted by their states? The battle to enact sanctions was a long and difficult one at every level of government. In Missouri,...(Read Full Post)