Senate Democrats blocked last-ditch GOP bids Thursday to upend President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, forcing Republicans to move on to other fights as both sides looked to ensure Tehran’s compliance with the pact down the road.
The Democrats’ third filibuster of a measure to reject the deal marked the end of Congress’ 60-day review of the agreement brokered by Mr. Obama, Iran and five leading nations to thwart the Islamic Republic from acquiring an atomic bomb in exchange for billions in sanctions relief.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, angered by Democrats who shielded Mr. Obama from using his veto against the disapproval resolution, tried to make the debate as painful as possible for the party ahead of next year’s elections. He forced them to take politically tough votes Thursday that pitted their allegiance to Mr. Obama’s deal against their support for Israel and four U.S. prisoners being held by Iran.
Polling has been trending negative toward the Iran deal, and Mr. McConnell said some of the Democrats now offering proposals to try to stiffen the agreement are hoping to repair relations with voters.
“Democrats went to extreme lengths to protect the president politically,” Mr. McConnell said. “Because they did, Democrats ensured that this would be not just be Obama’s deal with Iran but the Democratic Party’s deal with Iran, too.”
His amendment to condition sanctions relief on Iran’s recognition of Israel and the release of those Americans failed, 53 votes to 45, to reach the 60-vote threshold needed to advance. Three of the four Senate Democrats who bucked their party on the Iran deal refused to support the measure, arguing it was a distraction that amounted to tacit approval of the underlying agreement.
“I am not certain that I would want to give my imprimatur to the agreement, even under those conditions which this amendment would do,” Sen. Bob Menendez, New Jersey Democrat, said.
Senators then voted for a third time Thursday to take up the disapproval resolution, only for it to fail short once again, 56 votes to 42, leaving Mr. Obama a free hand to begin implementing the deal.
Mr. McConnell signaled the chamber will move on from the nuclear debate and take up a bill to ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, a vote that Democrats have blasted as a showpiece ahead of Pope Francis’ visit to Capitol Hill next week and a waste of time, as Congress races to fund the government past Oct. 1.
But Speaker John A. Boehner says “all options are on the table” to stall the nuclear deal, including a lawsuit arguing the president violated the terms of the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act by not submitting some of the secret side deals between Iran and the IAEA.
Even Mr. Obama’s supporters said they’re not out of the woods, as Americans gaze unfavorably on the deal and GOP candidates for the 2016 presidential nomination threaten to tear it up upon taking office.
“While today marks the end of the congressional review period, intense debate surrounding this deal will continue, and its future after the next 16 months remains far from certain,” Sen. Chris Coons, Delaware Democrat who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee, said in a speech at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
As the White House forges ahead, Republicans and Democrats have begun debating steps Congress can take to strengthen the deal as it progresses.
Rep, Adam Kinzinger, Illinois Republican, is among military veterans in Congress who have proposed legislation that would pre-approve military action should Iran breach its vow in the agreement to “never seek, develop or acquire a nuclear weapon.”
In an interview, he said options to block the deal outright are “pretty limited” in light of Democratic support for Mr. Obama, and that Congress will have to focus on making sure Iran abides by a “very flawed” pact.
“The truth is, it looks like it’s a done deal,” he said.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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