Prominent Democratic senator comes out against Iran deal

Sen. Menendez will “vote to disapprove the agreement and, if called upon, would vote to override a veto“, according to remarks prepared for a speech at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey.

The count of Senate Democrats who have said they will back the president on Iran is now up to 24, with another seven expected to lend their support to the deal as well.

Although New York’s junior Democratic senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, has announced her support of the agreement, Diament said the OU “hasn’t given up on her” should new information surface that could change her mind.

The deal reached by negotiators from the U.S. and Iran as well as the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia, and China would limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.

I’m concerned that the deal ultimately legitimizes Iran as a threshold-nuclear state.

Mr. Menendez said the negotiations began on the premise that its nuclear infrastructure would be largely stripped away.

The battle lines are well drawn: Hundreds of Orthodox rabbis will converge on Washington September 9 to rally at the U.S. Capitol against the Iranian nuclear agreement, while another 340 rabbis from all branches of Judaism signed onto a letter sent Monday to members of Congress supporting it.

“If you’re going to snapback, you have to snapback to something”, Menendez said forcefully at the time. “A hope that things may be different in Iran in 10 to 15 years“.

Markey said Iran has previously misled the U.S. on its plans for a nuclear program, and “verification is key to this agreement”.

Twenty Democrats in the Senate have so far announced that they support the agreement.

Menendez said Iran must be forced into being more transparent.

Congress can override Obama’s veto if both chambers have a two-thirds majority vote in opposition to the deal, something that’s looking less and less likely. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who had been heavily courted by the administration and was seen as a possible supporter, said over the weekend he would oppose the deal.

“Finally, we have done too little for too long to cut off Iran’s support for terrorists and other proxies throughout the region, from Assad in Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon and many more“.

At the time, Cohen affirmed his strong Jewish identity and support for Israel, but accused Netanyahu and Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner of playing political games and engineering the speech as a tool to be wielded against the Obama administration. Chuck Schumer, also announced he would vote against the deal, but did so with a short paper statement that he released in the middle of the first GOP presidential debate.

“I have shared the op-ed with a few people… but I don’t view myself as, quote, lobbying, because I don’t think it’s that kind of issue”, Corker said.