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 Congress is poised to vote in September on the U.S.-led
international agreement. As proposed by President Barack Obama and
other world powers, the deal aims to curb Iran's nuclear program in
exchange for lifting economic sanctions on the country.
To prevent it from being killed by Republican opponents in the U.S.
Congress, Obama needs to lock up support from his fellow Democrats,
but he has a long way to go.
Menendez worked on legislation setting the congressional review
process for the deal and he has made sharp comments, leading some to
speculate that he would end up opposing it. Aides to the senator
would not give any hint of his decision, however.
 Earlier this month, Obama suffered a setback when Senator Chuck
Schumer, the chamber's third-ranking Democrat, announced his
opposition. At least 18 Democrats have said they will back the deal,
far short of the 34 needed to keep it alive by sustaining a likely
Obama veto of any disapproval legislation.
One Senate Democratic aide said on Monday that as many as 20
Democrats in the chamber now favor of the deal. Senate Democratic
Leader Harry Reid was expected to declare his position in early
September.
When the Senate convened in January under Republican control,
Menendez had to relinquish his Foreign Relations Committee
chairmanship. His fortunes slipped further in April, when a grand
jury indicted him on corruption charges and he stepped down from his
post as the senior Democrat on the panel.
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Menendez denies any wrongdoing and is fighting the criminal charges.
Months before the Iran negotiations wrapped up, Menendez spoke to
the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which is furiously
working to kill the deal, stressing his close ties to Israel while
questioning Iran's intentions.
"You can be certain the mullahs (Iran's leaders) are not going to
call us in Washington when they decide to breach the agreement.
They're going to sneak out, covertly, gradually over time, when they
think we're not looking," he said.
Besides the United States and Iran, the deal includes Russia, China,
the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the European Union.
Menendez will announce his position during a speech on Tuesday at
Seton Hall University in New Jersey.
(Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Christian Plumb)
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