US Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) has raised a series of questions about US envoy to Iran Robert Malley being on a long unpaid leave and remaining in his position.

Iran International first reported Thursday that Malley has long been absent from his job and his security clearance status was under review. The State Department after hours of delays finally admitted that Malley had been on leave. Quickly information emerged that on the same day his paid leave had turned into “unpaid leave.”

“When did the investigation that led to the suspension of Malley’s clearance begin?”, asked Sen Hagerty, and added, “When were Secretary of State Antony Blinken and President Joe Biden informed of it?”

Malley had been conspicuously absent from a Congressional briefing in May and the State Department had said that he was on personal leave due to the illness of a family member. The question raised by lawmakers is why the administration did not tell the truth to Congress about his security clearance issue.

Senator Hagerty further asked, “Why did they allow Malley to continue in his diplomatic role while under investigation?” He went further questioning Malley’s appointment in the first place, mentioning that his “contacts with Hamas and other extremist groups raised concern in the past.”

Hagerty last week introduced a bill to notify the administration that any sanctions relief for Iran must be submitted to Congress for review.

Given the fact that Malley was the US negotiator in nuclear talks with Iran and played a major role in shaping the Biden administration’s Iran policy, Sen Hagerty asked why the President created "such a powerful position for Malley" and refused to make it Senate-confirmed.

US Special Envoys normally require Senate confirmation. If they received earlier confirmation as ambassadors, administrations skip the process.