Senators were pushing toward a vote Thursday afternoon that will likely prove President Obama has the support to follow through on the Iran nuclear deal, undercutting House Republicans’ newly raised objections.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell set the 3:45 p.m. vote as he opened the session, a day after he rejected some Republicans’ claims that the deal can be derailed because the president never provided all of the documents to Capitol Hill.
Mr. McConnell argues that Mr. Obama will plow ahead next week no matter what, unless Congress acts to officially disapprove of the deal this week. House Republican leaders, however, say that since two side-agreements to the deal have not been sent to Congress, the 60-day clock for Capitol Hill to review the agreement hasn’t really started yet, and Mr. Obama would be on murky legal ground if he were to press ahead on Sept. 17.
Senate Democrats are mounting a filibuster to try to preserve the president’s deal, and have enough publicly committed votes to succeed.
Mr. McConnell pleaded with them to rethink their move and break with the president on the unpopular deal.
“This is a deal that will far outlast one administration. The president may have the luxury of vacating office in a few months, but many of our responsibilities extend beyond that,” the Kentucky Republican said. “The American people will remember where we stand today. Let’s stand on their side.”
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, for his part, said Republicans were trying to cut off a valuable debate too quickly, saying the chamber only began debating the Iran deal on Tuesday and holding a vote Thursday meant just three days were spent on one of the most momentous issues.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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