Sen. Barbara Boxer on Wednesday asked Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker to delay consideration of a bill that would require congressional approval of any nuclear deal with Iran, citing opposition to the bill by former foreign policy and military leaders.
“To force Congress to weigh in now on the Iran nuclear talks before a final deal has been completed would be a reckless rush to judgment,” the California Democrat wrote in a letter to Corker. “It would undermine negotiations at a critical moment and could derail a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to deal with this looming threat.”
The panel is scheduled Tuesday to consider the bill, which would give lawmakers a 60-day window to approve the deal and would tie President Obama’s ability to waive sanctions — a key demand by Iran — to that process. Obama has threatened to veto the bill.
Support for the legislation, co-sponsored by Bob Menendez of New Jersey, who stepped down as ranking Democrat on the panel after being indicted a week ago on federal corruption charges, is strong. The bill has 21 co-sponsors, including seven other Democrats, and Corker said Sunday he is only two or three votes shy of a veto-proof majority for passage.
Earlier Wednesday, the president spoke with Corker, a Tennessee Republican, by phone about the ongoing Iran talks, but the two did not negotiate on the bill, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
“The conversation was not an opportunity for the two men to negotiate the terms of any sort of legislation, but rather just an opportunity for the president to speak directly to the chairman to underscore his view about the opportunity that now exists,” Earnest said.
