Only in a Washington that “leads from behind” would American leaders hail a deal with an arch enemy to deny it a weapon of awful destructive power, only to have that foe declare the very same day that it will never stop its development of that terrible device.
Yesterday, President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry excitedly announced that Iran has agreed to begin observing the six-month interim nuclear deal on Monday, Jan. 20.
Kerry called it “a critical, significant step forward toward reaching a verifiable resolution that prevents Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.”
A Potemkin deal
Kerry’s statement doubtless sparked waves of laughter in Tehran since on Sunday, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said his country “will in no way, never, dismantle our centrifuges.”
Centrifuges are the key here because they are used to generate weapons-grade uranium and, while Iran agreed to take its uranium stockpile a step away from that grade, the process can be reversed “in one day,” Araghchi said.
Put another way, the interim deal is not merely a temporary agreement supposedly put in place while a permanent deal is negotiated, it’s mere window dressing.
Barrasso presses sanctions case
Meanwhile, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wy, continues moving towards securing a veto-proof majority in support of tougher sanctions against Iran.
Barrasso’s measure has 59 co-sponsors, including 43 Republicans and 16 Democrats, leaving it just eight votes short of the 67 needed to pass it over Obama’s veto.
There are four GOP senators not yet signed up as co-sponsors, which means only four more Democrats must be persuaded.
How many more times must Iran spit in America’s eye in order to get four more Republicans and four more Democrats to show some backbone?
