The Republican-controlled Senate is pushing aside amendments offered by two of its most conservative members in order to clear the way for likely approval of a bill that would give Congress the power to review a nuclear agreement with Iran.
For the past week, the Senate has fought more than 67 amendments to the proposed bill, all of them introduced by Republicans. When the Senate, likely today, votes on a leadership proposal to cut off debate and move toward a final vote, it expects to lock out votes on the amendments and mark a clear defeat for two freshmen senators, Marco Rubio of Florida and Tom Cotton of Arkansas, whose proposals have attracted the most controversy.
Rubio, a presidential candidate, wants any deal to be contingent on Iran recognizing the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state. Cotton wants a vote on an amendment that would require Iran to allow inspectors access to any suspicious nuclear sites.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell feared that the amendments, if passed, would upset a bipartisan deal that also included an initially reluctant White House and draw a veto from President Barack Obama.
Cotton and Rubio have taken to Twitter to talk up their continued opposition to the bill.
“We will not accept a deal that allows a nuclear Iran!” Rubio tweeted Wednesday. Cotton tweeted that Democratic intransigence had blocked the Senate from strengthening the bill.
When Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada blamed the Republicans for offering “poison pills” aimed at killing the bill, Cotton shot back, calling the amendments “vitamin pills” aimed at improving it.
In a speech Wednesday, McConnell said the bill, called the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, offers Congress the best chance to weigh in on any deal negotiated by the Obama administration.
“Many wish the bill was stronger — I don’t disagree with them,” McConnell said. “But this is a piece of legislation worthy of our support.”
Many Republicans had been prepared to vote against the amendments, including Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who worried that they might hinder the Senate from reaching “the finish line.”
Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the moves by Rubio and Cotton had ended discussions with Democrats on how to vote on amendments in an orderly way.
But he declined to criticize either of his colleagues, saying only that “people understand certainly what’s occurred over the course of the last week.” He predicted the bill would now pass with an overwhelming vote.
The bill would give Congress the power of review over the nuclear agreement with Iran. It would allow members to approve any deal before congressional sanctions could be removed. McConnell said Congress also would have greater authority to quickly impose sanctions if Iran did not follow the agreement.
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