Congress Lacks Sufficient Votes to Block Agreement with Iran

Bloomberg News has reported, citing John Boehner, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, in a private meeting that Republicans do not have enough votes to prevent President Barack Obama's veto regarding the review of the nuclear agreement with Iran. According to Bloomberg, Boehner stated during a private meeting on Saturday, April 24, with a coalition of Republican Jews in Las Vegas, that he does not expect the votes necessary to oppose the comprehensive agreement with Iran to reach the two-thirds required to override a presidential veto. Two-thirds of the representatives' votes are needed to prevent a potential veto by the President of the United States regarding congressional bills and laws. Bloomberg reported Boehner's comments from four individuals who attended the private meeting in Las Vegas. Barack Obama and the White House have emphasized on several occasions that the proposal for oversight and review of the comprehensive agreement with Iran will face a presidential veto. The "Review of the Nuclear Agreement with Iran" proposal requires the Obama administration to present the text of any agreement reached with Iran to Congress. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, another part of the U.S. Congress, voted on April 14 for a "review" proposal. A White House spokesperson announced at that time that Obama is likely to sign a revised version of the Republican and Democratic senators' proposal. This version allows Congress 30 days to review, after which the President has time to veto it if he disagrees with the legislative body's opinion. After that, Congress can again attempt to gather the two-thirds necessary to bypass the veto. Overall, this process could take up to 52 days. During the 30-day period, the President can lift sanctions imposed by the U.S. government, but sanctions enacted by Congress can remain in effect until the final review period of the nuclear agreement with Tehran is completed. U.S. sanctions against Iran, due to the country's nuclear program, are partly imposed directly by Congress and partly by the government. Bloomberg states that opponents and critics of the current negotiations are trying to enhance the review proposal's capabilities to at least prevent the lifting of those sanctions imposed by Congress. Meanwhile, other reports indicate that there are disagreements among Republicans regarding the "review" proposal. Iran and the P5+1 countries are expected to reach a final and comprehensive agreement by the end of June, following the framework agreement reached in Lausanne.