WICKER, HYDE-SMITH & COLLEAGUES PLEDGE TO BLOCK ANY IRAN DEAL NOT SUBMITTED TO CONGRESS FOR APPROVAL
Miss. Senators Admonish Biden Administration Over Nuclear Talks
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) on Tuesday joined colleagues in a letter to President Biden rebuking the administration’s negotiations for a new Iran nuclear deal.
The letter comes as reports emerge that the Biden administration is actively renegotiating another entry into the 2015 Nuclear Agreement with Iran, and as analysts expect Iran to be months away from nuclear capabilities.
“We write to call attention to a range of obligations that your administration is statutorily mandated to fulfill in relation to Congressional oversight over any such agreement, and to ensure that your officials know we are committed to providing availability, assistance, and resources so you can fully meet these mandates,” the Senators wrote. “We also write to emphasize that we are committed to using the full range of options and leverage available to United States Senators to ensure that you meet those obligations, and that the implementation of any agreement will be severely if not terminally hampered if you do not.”
The Senators also emphasized that the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act (INARA) requires the president to submit any Iran deal to Congress.
“As a threshold matter, we reiterate our view that any agreement with Iran regarding its nuclear program is of such gravity for U.S. national security that by definition it is a treaty requiring Senate advice and consent,” the Senators said.
Overall, 33 Senators signed the letter, which was led by U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Read it here.
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