In Setback, Obama Concedes Congress Role on Iran Deal
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - US President Barack Obama conceded on Tuesday that Congress will have the power to review a nuclear deal with Iran, reluctantly giving in to pressure from Republicans and some in his own party after they crafted a rare compromise demanding a say.
The role for the Republican-controlled Congress injects a new element of uncertainty into the delicate final stages of nuclear negotiations between Iran and major powers.
Since a preliminary agreement was reached in Switzerland on April 2, the White House had stepped up its lobbying to persuade Democratic senators not to support the bipartisan bill that would give Congress oversight of a final deal, saying it could threaten what Obama hopes will be a legacy-defining foreign-policy achievement.
Washington, as well as negotiators from Iran and other members of the six-power group, has for months voiced concern that Congress could fatally undermine a deal before a June 30 deadline for a final pact.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Senator Bob Corker, who wrote the bill, said the White House had agreed to go along with the bill only after it was clear there was strong Democratic support. The legislation was passed unanimously by the committee and is expected to pass the full Senate and then the House of Representatives.
"That change occurred only when they saw how many senators were going to vote for this," Corker said.
Bipartisan support for the bill had grown in recent weeks to near the 67 votes needed to override any presidential veto. But senators from Obama's Democratic Party did succeed in adding amendments to water down the bill, making it more palatable to the White House, Reuters reported.
