Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray announced Tuesday she will support the Iran nuclear agreement, moving the controversial deal pushed by President Barack Obama one vote closer to success.
“This is not a perfect deal, and there are several elements I would like to be stronger,” Murray said in a lengthy statement.
“I support this deal not because I trust Iran, but because I don’t trust Iran,” she said. “I support this deal because I believe it puts us in a better and stronger position to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons now and in the future—even if they continue down their current extreme path, and even if they get worse.
The agreement was reached July 14 between Iran, the U.S., and five other nations. It aims to prevent Iran’s development of nuclear weapons in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions and enabling billions of dollars of aid to reach Iran.
Republicans in the Senate and House oppose the agreement and plan to vote on a resolution of disapproval in September. President Obama has said he’ll veto that resolution should it reach his desk.
In the Senate, it will require the votes of at least 41 Democratic senators to block the resolution. A minimum of 34 votes are required to uphold an Obama veto of such a resolution.
In the House, the resolution is certain to pass but House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, has said she can corral enough votes of Democrats to sustain a veto. Two-thirds votes are required in each chamber to override a presidential veto.
Murray is the latest high-ranking Democratic senator to publicly support the deal. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid declared his support over the weekend.
Washington’s other Democratic U.S. senator, Maria Cantwell, has yet to declare her position on the agreement.
On Tuesday, Murray argued the deal provides the international community more tools to respond if Iran goes back on its word.
“This deal doesn’t simply include inspections, it includes consequences,” she said. “The ‘snapback’ provision of the deal makes sure that if the United States believes that Iran is violating the deal in any way, we can bring the full force of sanctions back—and we can do that unilaterally.”
And Murray restated her resolve to support Israel should Iran breach, or even appear to break, any terms of the deal.
“Our support for Israel should continue and be strengthened to make it crystal clear to all in the region that we will stand with our ally to enforce this deal and make sure Iran doesn’t hurt our shared interests in any other way,” she said.
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