Leading lawmakers, including supporters of President Barack Obama ’s nuclear deal with Iran, rapped the White House for delaying fresh sanctions on Tehran over its missile program , warning that the move would embolden it to further destabilize the Middle East. The abrupt reversal by the administration came as Iranian President Hassan Rouhani publicly ordered his military to dramatically scale up the country’s missile program if the sanctions went ahead. Senior U.S. officials have told lawmakers the sanctions were delayed because of “evolving diplomatic work” between the White House and the Iranian government. The administration had notified Congress on Wednesday that it would impose new financial penalties on nearly a dozen companies and individuals for their alleged role in developing Iran’s ballistic missile program, but pulled back later that day. Top U.S. lawmakers, including White House allies, said they believed failing to respond to Tehran’s two recent ballistic missile […]