Sen. Joe Manchin announced Tuesday he will vote to disapprove the nuclear deal with Iran, becoming the fourth Senate Democrat to reject the accord.
Manchin, of West Virginia, said he would not support the deal because it does not stop Iran from conducting terrorist activity in the region.
“For me, this deal had to address Iran’s terrorist actions,” Manchin said in a statement. “Without doing so would reward Iran’s 36 years of deplorable behavior and do nothing to prevent its destructive activities.”
The Obama administration had been working aggressively to assure congressional lawmakers that the United States would take new steps to boost security in the region in order to counter any new terrorism that would be generated by the deal. In exchange Iran reducing its nuclear capability, the accord will free up $100 billion in frozen assets, which critics say will be used to sponsor terrorism.
“Lifting sanctions without ensuring that Iran’s sponsorship of terrorism is neutralized is dangerous to regional and American security,” Manchin said. “The administration has accepted — what I consider to be a false choice — that this is only about nuclear weapons and not terrorism. However, the fact of the matter is that we are concerned about Iran having a bomb because, in large part, it is the world’s largest state sponsor of terror. Asking us to set aside the terrorist question is irresponsible and misses the point.”
Manchin announced his opposition moments before Minority Leader Harry Reid delivered an address in support of the accord. In that speech, Reid pledged additional U.S. help for Israel to defend itself from Iranian-sponsored terrorism.
“It will take more money and military support, but we must provide the one true democracy in the region and the one and only Jewish state in the world with the resources it needs,” Reid said.
In addition to Manchin, Democratic Sens. Chuck Schumer of New York, Ben Cardin of Maryland and Bob Menendez of New Jersey, are publicly opposed to the deal. Reid indicated Tuesday that Democrats are pushing to require a 60-vote threshold to pass the resolution, and later in the day, the 41st Democrat said he would support the agreement.
