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 Any effort in Congress to overturn the deal will face an uphill
fight. Republicans have majorities in both the House of
Representatives and Senate, but they would need the support of
dozens of President Barack Obama's fellow Democrats to sustain a
"resolution of disapproval" that could cripple a deal.
The odds of that are slim. A resolution of disapproval would need
only the Republican majority to pass the House, but would require at
least six Democrats to get the 60 votes needed to advance in the
Senate. The chances of mustering enough support to then overrule an
Obama veto are slimmer still.
Obama vowed on Tuesday that he would veto any bill Congress passed
that would prevent implementation of the Iran agreement.
Nancy Pelosi, who leads the Democrats in the House, praised Obama in
a statement. "I commend the president for his strength throughout
the historic negotiations that have led to this point," she said,
promising Congress would "closely review" the agreement.
Senate Democrats have stood firm so far against Republican-led
efforts to interfere with the talks between Iran, the United States
and five other world powers. Some expressed skepticism about the
deal, but others said they expected to vote for it.
 Senator Dianne Feinstein, a veteran Democrat who is the ranking
member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said she would support
the deal. "This is a strong agreement that meets our national
security needs and I believe will stand the test of time," she said
in a statement.
In the House, more than 150 Democrats, including Pelosi, signed a
letter in May that strongly supported the negotiations.
"I understand the heavy lift that's involved," Tennessee Republican
Senator Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, told reporters when asked about the chances of passing a
"resolution of disapproval".
Corker said the Foreign Relations committee would review the deal
closely but added he would begin "from a place of deep skepticism"
about whether the agreement meets the goal of preventing Iran from
obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Other leading Republicans went much further in their criticism.
House Speaker John Boehner promised a fight.
"Instead of stopping the spread of nuclear weapons in the Middle
East, this deal is likely to fuel a nuclear arms race around the
world," Boehner said in a statement.
Obama in May signed a law, authored by Corker, giving Congress the
right to review the agreement and potentially sink it by passing a
disapproval resolution that would eliminate the president's ability
to waive sanctions passed by Congress.
Easing sanctions is an integral part of the deal, under which Iran
will curtail its nuclear program.
60 DAYS
Under the Iran Review Act, lawmakers have 60 days to review the
agreement and decide how to respond, once they receive the agreement
and supporting documentation. During that period, plus 22 more days
in which Obama could veto a resolution and Congress could try to
override it, Obama cannot waive the congressional sanctions.
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A veto override would require a two-thirds majority in both houses,
or 13 Democrats along with all 54 Republicans in the Senate, and 43
Democrats plus all 236 House Republicans.
Sanctions passed by Congress account for the overwhelming majority
of those imposed by the United States. U.S. sanctions are central to
the international regime because of the country's influence on
global trade and banking.
Congressional briefings on the Iran deal have already begun. Vice
President Joe Biden was to meet with House Democrats on Wednesday
morning to discuss Iran, and Obama and other administration
officials called several lawmakers on Tuesday.
Acknowledging the difficulty of passing a disapproval resolution,
some lawmakers suggested Congress should consider, and then reject,
a "resolution of approval."
Defeating such a resolution by a large margin would not affect the
sanctions regime, but it would send a strong message that the United
States is not united behind a "bad" pact and was prepared to act if
Iran moved toward building a bomb, they said.
Corker told Reuters in an interview that congressional leaders would
decide whether to pursue a resolution of approval or disapproval in
the coming weeks. But neither the full House nor Senate is expected
to vote on any measure before September, after lawmakers' August
recess.
Steny Hoyer, the number-two Democrat in the House, dismissed
concerns that the delay would leave Democrats vulnerable to a summer
of attacks from Republicans that they will be voting "for Iran" if
they back Obama.
"I'm not sure that it's politically disadvantageous to members," he
told reporters. "I think the American public may well agree with the
president on this."
Both parties acknowledged that the debate will not end this year.
Some lawmakers have discussed imposing more sanctions over Iran's
human rights record or for supporting terrorism.
The Iran Review Act requires the president to regularly certify that
Tehran is adhering to terms of a deal. There is no guarantee the
next president would do so. Most Republican 2016 White House
hopefuls said they do not support the deal.
(Additional reporting by Idrees Ali, Roberta Rampton and David
Lawder; Editing by David Storey, Stuart Grudgings, Jeffrey Benkoe
and Ken Wills)
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reserved.]
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