Webster Urges Congressional ‘Role’ in Iran Nuclear Deal

As New York Rep. Kathleen Rice (D) announces her retirement, making her the 30^th Democratic member of Congress that will not be running for reelection, Florida Rep. Daniel Webster (R) joins an effort against the Biden Administration. Along with 165 Republican colleagues, Webster sent a letter to the President, arguing that Congress should have “a role in any new nuclear agreement with Iran.”

As seen from the election of President Donald Trump (R), one concern for voters and Republicans was the Iran Nuclear Deal negotiated by President Barack Obama (D).

The agreement, called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was criticized leading up to the 2016 election.

In their assessment of the negotiation, Republican lawmakers agreed that it was a concern, outlining what they believed were some of the key issues with the deal.

In a press release from the Florida Republican, the concerns listed are:

1. Oppose any agreement that lifts U.S. sanctions on the Iranian regime without first verifying Iran has accounted for its nuclear capabilities, dismantled its enrichment capabilities, halted its support for terrorists, and released all U.S. prisoners;
2. View any agreement not ratified by the Senate as non-binding;
3. Work to reimpose and strengthen any terrorism, missile or human rights sanctions lifted, suspended or otherwise weakened by such an agreement; and,
4. Investigate whether President Biden’s dependency on the Russians to revive the Iranian nuclear deal is weakening our deterrent posture with the Russians in Ukraine and other areas of the world.

While 13 Republican members of Congress have announced that they will not seek reelection, 165 joined Webster in penning a letter to President Biden, expressing that “the Iranian regime brutally represses, persecutes, tortures, and murders its own people.”

“It wastes the Iranian people’s resources on terrorism, foreign aggression, missiles and nuclear weapons capabilities,” they added, commenting that they “hope to see the day where all U.S. sanctions on Iran can be lifted, when the U.S. and Iran can enjoy normalized relations, and when the people of Iran have a government that respects human dignity.”

However, they lamented that “that day will not come if you  provide sanctions relief that will fuel the regime’s corruption and incompetence at the expense of the Iranian people.”