|
 The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is scheduled to debate and
vote on Tuesday afternoon on the measure put forward by Senator Bob
Corker, the panel's chairman, that would give Congress a vote on any
final nuclear agreement with Iran.
The committee's Democratic and Republican leaders were trying to
reach a compromise agreement on roughly 50 amendments to the bill
that would change it enough to be passed by the panel with strong
support from both parties.
If the panel of 10 Republicans and nine Democrats approves the
legislation, it would be sent for a vote in the 100-member Senate. A
close committee vote would dim its prospects in the full chamber.
Senator Ben Cardin, the panel's top Democrat, said he and Corker
were trying to work out a compromise.
"I think we can get to a place where we can deal with most of the
White House concerns and maintain the purpose of the bill, which is
an early congressional review and timely notice if there is a
material breach (by Iran of an agreement)," he told reporters.
Corker told reporters it was too soon to know what would happen.
"Things are fluid, but it feels like things are going pretty well
right now," he said.
 An April 2 framework nuclear deal Iran struck with Britain, China,
France, Germany, Russia and the United States seeks to limit the
Iranian nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic
sanctions. A final deal is due by June 30.
Corker's bill would give lawmakers 60 days to review a final
agreement, during which the Obama administration would be barred
from giving Iran most sanctions relief and members could vote on
whether to approve or reject sanctions measures.
Obama promises to veto the bill in its current form. Administration
officials have said it impinges on the president's authority and
includes provisions that could kill any chance of reaching a final
nuclear deal with Tehran.
In a sign of the importance of the issue to the White House
Secretary of State John Kerry and other top administration officials
were holding classified briefings for the full House and Senate on
Monday and Tuesday.
[to top of second column] |
Overriding a veto would require the approval of two-thirds of both
the Senate and House of Representatives, meaning it would need the
support of many of Obama's fellow Democrats.
Lawmakers said it was far too early to know whether the bill would
pass the Senate and House in the coming weeks, let alone win the
backing of the 67 senators and 290 House members to override a veto.
Republicans hold 54 seats in the Senate and 244 in the House.
In particular, opponents want to remove a provision that would force
Obama to certify that Iran has not supported any act of terrorism
against the United States or any U.S. citizen.
They also want to shorten the 60-day review period.
Democratic lawmakers have introduced amendments that would address
both concerns.
But Republicans have introduced amendments to make the legislation
more restrictive. Senator Marco Rubio, who announced his
presidential candidacy on Monday, offered an amendment requiring
that Iran acknowledge Israel's right to exist.
Passing the Republican amendments could doom the legislation by
driving away Democrats willing to break with the White House and
support a somewhat watered down version of the bill.
(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
