President Obama didn’t just threaten to veto the disapproval resolution of the Iran deal that the Republican-led Congress is likely to pass. The President vowed to veto ANY attempts by Republicans to block the deal that will prevent Iran from developing their own nuclear weapons.
Video:
The President said:
Put simply, no deal means a greater chance of more war in the Middle East. Moreover, we give nothing up by testing whether or not this problem can be solved peacefully. If, in a worst-case scenario, Iran violates the deal, the same options that are available to me today will be available to any U.S. President in the future. And I have no doubt that 10 or 15 years from now, the person who holds this office will be in a far stronger position with Iran further away from a weapon and with the inspections and transparency that allow us to monitor the Iranian program.
For this reason, I believe it would be irresponsible to walk away from this deal. But on such a tough issue, it is important that the American people and their representatives in Congress get a full opportunity to review the deal. After all, the details matter. And we’ve had some of the finest nuclear scientists in the world working through those details. And we’re dealing with a country — Iran — that has been a sworn adversary of the United States for over 35 years. So I welcome a robust debate in Congress on this issue, and I welcome scrutiny of the details of this agreement.
But I will remind Congress that you don’t make deals like this with your friends. We negotiated arms control agreements with the Soviet Union when that nation was committed to our destruction. And those agreements ultimately made us safer.
I am confident that this deal will meet the national security interest of the United States and our allies. So I will veto any legislation that prevents the successful implementation of this deal.
We do not have to accept an inevitable spiral into conflict. And we certainly shouldn’t seek it. And precisely because the stakes are so high, this is not the time for politics or posturing. Tough talk from Washington does not solve problems. Hard-nosed diplomacy, leadership that has united the world’s major powers offers a more effective way to verify that Iran is not pursuing a nuclear weapon.
Republicans are already blowing a gasket over a deal that they haven’t seen. Sen. Lindsey Graham is calling the deal a “declaration of war on Israel.” Republicans are vowing to block the deal, but the reality is that they can do nothing to stop it. Because of the way that the approval resolution vote is structured, Republicans need super-majorities in both the House and the Senate to override any Obama veto of their disapproval.
President Obama’s remarks this morning were exactly what Congressional Democrats needed to hear. What they will be voting on isn’t a choice between a “good” deal, and a “bad” deal as Republicans like to frame it. The choice is between the path to war and the path to peace. The President was correct. No deal means that Republicans still have their top argument for war with Iran. This deal takes that argument away from conservatives and makes it impossible for them to argue for the war in the Middle East that they have been dreaming of.
Notice that Obama stated that he would veto any legislation that tries to block the deal. The President went beyond the approval/disapproval process and warned Republicans that any bill that blocks the deal will be vetoed. Presumably, this would include attempts to add language blocking the deal to unrelated legislation and appropriations bills.
Republicans can do nothing to stop the deal. Obama has the Democratic votes to win. All Republicans can do is fearmonger and make empty promises about actions that will most certainly fail.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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