Partisanship damaging US foreign policy, says Iran

But the recently revealed side agreement between Iran and the United Nations’ worldwide Atomic Energy Agency that allows Iran to conduct its own inspections of its own Parchin nuclear site, long suspected of being used to develop nuclear arms, makes a strong case that the deal is unacceptable.

The broader deal requires Iran to dismantle most of its nuclear program for at least a decade in exchange for having global sanctions lifted.

With majority Republicans unanimously opposed, Obama needs 34 Senate Democrats to sustain his veto of a resolution disapproving the deal.

To guarantee that the deal is approved by Congress, the president launched a campaign in July to rally Democratic support.

The letter also offered assurances of continued support to and cooperation with Israel, the need for continued U.S. and global vigilance in countering Iran’s destabilizing activities, and the establishment of an implementation office that would coordinate U.S. oversight of the agreement and provide regular briefings to Congress. “We have a wide array of unilateral and multilateral responses that we can employ if Iran fails to meets its commitments”, Obama said.

“Although we know that Iran will remain a major menace to the region and the world, even without nuclear weapons, a nuclear armed Iran would represent an unacceptable threat to the United States, to Israel, and to global security”. It is unclear if Congress has enough votes to override the veto.

Nadler becomes one of the most senior Jewish lawmakers supporting the agreement, a distinction that matters, given vociferous opposition from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and pro-Israeli groups.

“The Zionist regime is the most important source of instability and spread of terrorism in the Middle East”, the Iranian spokesperson said.

Next Wednesday, August 26 at the Five Seasons Brewing Company in Atlanta, Georgia Congressman Lynn Westmoreland, who serves of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, will speak to the Atlanta Young Republicans about his opposition to the deal.

Congress will vote on whether to reject the deal in September, a measure the White House has promised to veto.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) at an event in North Syracuse on Tuesday.

Sticking to his talking points from previous media appearances promoting the deal, Obama characterized the dismissal of the deal as a sign of war.

In his letter to Nadler, Obama emphasised US support for Israel, saying he views the country’s security as sacrosanct.

“President Obama boasts his deal includes ‘unprecedented verification.’ He claims it’s not built on trust”, said the Republican Speaker John Boehner.

Other congressional Democrats who this week announced their support for the deal have done so suggesting that Obama’s earlier my-way-or-war characterization of the debate had been the wrong tack for the White House to take toward deal skeptics.