Sen. Bob Menendez Comes Out In Opposition Of Iran Nuclear Deal
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez announced Tuesday he is opposed to the Obama administration's nuclear deal with Iran.
The Democrat said in a speech in his home state that he opposes the deal, which would curb Iran's nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions.
As CBS2's Jessica Schneider reported, Secretary of State John Kerry has joined other world powers for months of talks with Tehran.
The agreement would force Iran to curb its nuclear program in exchange for billions of dollars in relief from sanctions.
New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has already expressed her support for the plan, along with Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy.
But Menendez said the deal doesn't go far enough.
"What the agreement does is to recommit Iran not to pursue a bomb, a promise they have already violated in the past," Menendez said in the speech, WCBS 880's Kelly Waldron reported.
The senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee joins New York Sen. Chuck Schumer as Democrats who are rejecting the deal.
"Unlike where we started these negotiations over two years ago, where our purpose was to significantly dismantle Iran's nuclear infrastructure, we're not doing that," Menendez told WCBS 880's Steve Scott. "We're basically mothballing that infrastructure for 10 years. Not even one centrifuge will be destroyed under this agreement.
"I have to look at ... what happens if the 20-year history of Iran, which is deceit, deception, delay and violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions is the future as well as the reality of the past. If it breaks then, what is our standing as it relates to stopping Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon? And in that respect, I think the agreement leaves us in a worse position than the leverage we presently have."
The Republican-led Congress is in the midst of a 60-day review of the deal, and is expected to vote in September on a resolution of disapproval that President Barack Obama has vowed to veto. Menendez said he would vote to override a veto.
New Jersey Senator Cory Booker and Connecticut's Richard Blumenthal were still weighing their decisions.
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