Congress’ objective should be to make this agreement work, not to kill it as an element of domestic opposition to the Obama administration.
Advertisement
UK officials said that its partners across Europe are already gearing up to engage with Iran on business opportunities and that it is hoped that businesses from the UK will meet all the requirements that Iran has for imports that will be permitted. “We must be able to ensure that information given to the IAEA does not leak out and become a how to guide for producing nuclear materials that can be used in nuclear weapons, and that countries know their patented or proprietary information won’t be stolen because they are released in IAEA documents”. Beyond improving security, this deal provides an environment to create better dialogue with Iran on every issue across the board.
All of the top Republicans are talking about their plans to abandon the U.S. commitment in this area, and Rubio sees value in being a top member of the club.
Judged by the standards set by this administration, the Iran deal is an appalling capitulation. “Our companions won’t stroll away with us“.
Rouhani went on to boast that he shrank Obama’s demand for nuclear restrictions from 25 years to eight; won the right to have advanced centrifuges capable of enriching weapons-grade uranium; maintained supposedly monitored control over two key nuclear facilities the U.S. had wanted dismantled; and ended the sanctions on missiles.
It is not at all obvious how our country should proceed at this moment.
Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, who supports the deal, said a few lawmakers have begun thinking that Iran won’t have as much as they feared to possibly use for activities that have destabilized the Middle East, such as supporting Shia militias in Iraq, Houthi rebels in Yemen and the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad. “But the practice of presidents making political agreements is not new“. No one at the time disagreed. And it has been approved by the United Nations Security Council.
Corker said the administration has put Congress in the position of appearing to scuttle diplomacy if lawmakers ultimately reject the deal.
On the other hand, that fact undermines Obama’s argument that the overall deal can be verified and is transparent.
There are legitimate reasons to question whether Iran intends to comply in good faith or is merely looking to regain its frozen assets and buy time as the United States struggles to reassure Israel and its Sunni allies in the region. Nothing Congress does can change that reality.
Advertisement
Kerry said earlier that any sort of military or cyber attack by Israel against Iran, whose Ayatollah has professed a desire for Israel to be annihilated, would be an “enormous mistake”. Does anyone believe they will forego the billions of dollars in contracts they could secure simply because lawmakers in the U.S. decide to back out of the deal? In that case, the president will veto the measure and waive the sanctions – unless opponents of the deal can override his veto.
