Senate Dems lock in votes for Iran nuclear deal

Washington • The White House and Senate Democrats locked up the votes Tuesday to frustrate attempts by outraged Republicans to pass a legislative rebuke to the Iran nuclear deal.

Four previously undeclared Senate Democrats — Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Gary Peters of Michigan and Maria Cantwell of Washington — announced their support for the international agreement in a coordinated burst. That pushed supporters to a 42-vote total, one more than necessary to block a GOP disapproval resolution with a filibuster and prevent a final vote.

"There is no better deal available now," declared Blumenthal, one of the Senate's Jewish Democrats, announcing his support for an accord that is strongly opposed by Israeli leaders as well as Republican senators.

Coming on the first day of Congress' fall session after a five-week summer recess, their announcements were a dramatic start to what promises to be a bitter, partisan debate on the deal.

The debate will take on some of the trappings of a political circus Wednesday as presidential candidate Donald Trump prepares to headline an anti-accord rally outside the Capitol.

It will play out at the start of a hectic three weeks on Capitol Hill. Congress must also find a way to keep the government funded past Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year. The developments didn't change the ultimate outcome, which has been clear for days: Even if the disapproval resolution should pass the House and Senate this week, President Barack Obama would veto it, and Democrats have the votes to sustain his veto.

But Obama and his Democratic allies now have within reach the possibility of stopping the resolution without a veto fight, despite the unanimous opposition of the Republicans who control both the House and the Senate.

"If we have to go through the procedural charade of a veto, and a vote to sustain the veto, it will be embarrassing for this administration and this country," said Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who's been involved in coordinating support for the agreement.

Republican opponents on Capitol Hill complained angrily about Democratic attempts to avoid a final vote on the disapproval resolution. The pro-Israel lobby AIPAC was also pressuring senators behind the scenes to allow a final vote even if they intend to oppose the disapproval resolution.

"The Senate should not hide behind procedural obfuscation to shield the president or our individual views," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

McConnell jousted on the Senate floor with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., over the terms of the debate as each side sought to frame the other as obstructionist.

Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, top Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, delivered an impassioned speech that was a broadside against the Obama administration.

"We know we have no policy in the Middle East," Corker said. The Iran deal "ends up being our de facto policy."

On the other side, the No. 2 Senate Democrat, Dick Durbin of Illinois, said, "What the president is trying to do is something that I believe should be the starting point in every critical foreign policy decision: Use diplomacy."

The agreement struck by Iran, the U.S., China, Russia, France, Britain and Germany in July would provide Iran hundreds of billions of dollars in relief from international sanctions in exchange for a decade of constraints on the country's nuclear program. The deal aims to keep Iran at least a year away from being able to produce enough nuclear material for a weapon.

Even as they faced the prospect of legislative defeat, Republicans tried some last-ditch maneuvers to avoid that outcome.

In the House, Republican Rep. Peter Roskam of Illinois offered a resolution to delay the vote, arguing that the clock on the congressional review period shouldn't start until lawmakers get more information on side agreements negotiated with Iran.

Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, also pointed to a letter from 15 Republican governors saying they plan to maintain state-level sanctions against Iran.

But the anti-Iran deal side picked up one surprise supporter: Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a moderate Democrat who had widely been counted in the "yes" column after making positive comments about the deal, became the fourth Senate Democrat to oppose it. "I've always said if I can't explain it back home, I can't support it," Manchin said.