Senate Gives Congress Power To Review Iran Deal

By  //  May 7, 2015

EDITOR’S NOTE:  The Senate just approved legislation to give Congress the power to review any negotiated nuclear agreement with Iran.  Sen. Nelson voted for it. Below is the transcript of Nelson’s remarks on the deal.

Bill Nelson
Bill Nelson

And I think this is an example of how two senators from the same state can come to different conclusions – apparently not about this legislation, advancing it, because this senator will in fact vote to move this legislation forward – but on the ultimate judgement that we have to make.

Senator Rubio has correctly stated, in my opinion, that Iran is a regime that is bent on aggression, that they cannot be trusted, that Israel is threatened, that we are basically the backstop protector of Israel – all of those things being very true.

But the question is, what is in the interest of the national security of the United States which in most cases always folds into what’s in the interest of the national security of Israel as well. And the senator and I come to different conclusions.

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Now, first of all, we don’t know the final details, but we do know a framework that was put out. And if that framework is fleshed out as it suggests, with the details by June the 30th, then the simple bottom line for this senator is if it prevents Iran from building a nuclear weapon over at least a ten-year period with the sufficient safeguards, intrusions, inspections – unannounced, as well – that prevents them from having a nuclear weapon without us getting a year’s – conservatively – a year’s advance notice, and we know that’s a guarantee for a ten-year period, if not 15 and 20 years, is that in the interest of the United States? And this senator has concluded, yes, it is.

I hope the agreement comes out as suggested by the framework.

I’ll be looking forward to examining that.

And as a result of us passing this legislation today, we will have a guarantee that we will vote on parts with regard to the lifting of sanctions. And we’ll be able to weigh in on the specifics.

It’s interesting how two senators from the same state can come out with such different conclusions having shared a lot of the similar information as this senator has served on the Intelligence Committee for six years. Senator Rubio is on the Intelligence Committee as well.

Mr. President, it will be an interesting debate as we get into the details. I yield the floor.