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After GOP letter to Iran, some key senators push bipartisan bill

Senate Foreign Relations chair Bob Corker, who did not sign the letter, is working to cool passions and pass a bipartisan bill that would give Congress a say in a deal.

Noticeably absent among the 47 senators 鈥� all Republicans 鈥撀爓ho signed聽Monday鈥檚聽explosive letter to the Iranian government was this consequential lawmaker: the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Bob Corker (R) of Tennessee.

Senator Corker, who was among seven Republicans who did not sign聽, told reporters聽on Tuesday that, as committee chairman,聽he聽had to 鈥渟tay focused鈥� on an outcome: passing a bipartisan bill that would ensure Congress has a say in聽whatever deal the administration may reach to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.

The bipartisan approach allows senators to fulfill their "appropriate role," Corker said. At the same time, senators working on the bill have taken care not to "handicap" the president, he said.聽

President Obama has threatened to veto the bill, which is cosponsored by the committee鈥檚 ranking member, Sen. Robert Menendez (D) of New Jersey. A total of 10 Democrats and 1 independent back the legislation, and if all 54 Senate Republicans vote for it, Corker would need only two more Democrats for a veto-proof majority.

Republicans and Democrats who back the bill feel very strongly about it. Congress, they say, ought to weigh in on an agreement of such import 鈥� even if it is not a treaty, .聽Their say-so is required if the president agrees to permanently roll back sanctions that Congress itself passed, though he can suspend them for as long as two years through his executive authority.

鈥淲hen the president touches congressional sanctions, Congress should have a say," said Sen. Tim Kaine (D) of Virginia,聽on Tuesday. Senator Kaine is one of the bill鈥檚 co-sponsors.

Kaine told reporters that the controversial letter is hurting his ability to bring more Democrats on board 鈥� especially after last week鈥檚 controversial House speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who denounced the deal that鈥檚 being negotiated, and after an initial move by the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell (R) of Kentucky, to rush the bill to the floor this week. Senator McConnell later reversed course, after Democrats threatened to block the move.

鈥淎 number of my colleagues who I hoped would sign on to the Corker-Menendez bill ... they鈥檙e like, 鈥榃ell, I kind of agree on the substance, but isn鈥檛 the Senate showing that they can鈥檛 take this thing up in other than a rushed, partisan way?鈥� And you know, I鈥檓 trying to convince them, 鈥楲ook at the substance,鈥� but it鈥檚 harder and harder when people are pulling stunts like this.鈥�

The 鈥渟tunt鈥� that has so incensed Democrats 鈥� and concerned a few Republicans 鈥� is unlike anything that senators can remember, at least in their lifetimes. An open letter to the Iranian government, penned by freshman Sen. Tom Cotton (R) of Arkansas and released聽on Monday, is a four-paragraph tutorial on the US Constitution. It points out that the deal being negotiated by the administration with Iran, if it lacks congressional approval, is a 鈥渕ere executive agreement鈥� that the next president can revoke with the stroke of a pen.

Vice President Joe Biden said in a statement that he could not recall another instance where a group of senators 鈥渨rote directly to advise another country 鈥� much less a longtime foreign adversary 鈥� that the president does not have the constitutional authority to reach a meaningful understanding with them.鈥澛�

In America's history, presidents have entered into thousands of executive agreements with foreign powers, but mostly on noncontroversial issues.聽Iran's foreign minister dismissed the letter as a "propaganda" ploy.

California鈥檚 Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said the letter鈥檚 only purpose was to destroy ongoing negotiations in their closing days.

The letter shows that 鈥渘o matter what the president comes up with, [Republicans] are going to oppose it,鈥� Sen. Dick Durbin (D) of Illinois, the Senate minority whip, told the Monitor.

But some Republicans see it differently. The letter's real message, says signer Sen. Mark Kirk (R) of Illinois, is that 鈥渦nless you can get bipartisan consensus, you can鈥檛 get sustainable policy in America.鈥�

That point is seconded by Sen. Jeff Flake (R) of Arizona: 鈥淎 lot of this can be traced as a manifestation of the mistrust that people on Capitol Hill have of the president and his executive action on things like immigration and the Affordable Care Act.鈥�

Senator Flake said he did not sign the letter because he did not feel it was "appropriate," adding that negotiations are 鈥渉ard enough without introducing this element.鈥�

Corker says he will try to move beyond the 鈥減assion鈥� of the past 10 days to build support for his bipartisan bill. Regrettably, he said, Mr. Obama threatened a veto before his committee even finished the bill.聽

Specifically, the legislation requires the president to release a deal鈥檚 text to Congress for review within five days of its agreement. It聽also prohibits the聽president聽from suspending congressional sanctions for 60 days while Congress reviews it, including holding hearings on it.聽

Passage of a聽joint resolution of approval 鈥� or no action at all 鈥� within the 60-day period would allow the president to move ahead with congressional sanctions relief. Disapproval 鈥� with the necessary votes to override a veto 鈥� would block the president from lifting聽congressional sanctions.聽

All other aspects of a deal would still be in place. Another bipartisan bill, sponsored by Senators Kirk and Menendez, would require new sanctions against Iran if it leaves the negotiations 鈥� or violates an agreement. That, too, is close to the 67 votes needed to overcome a presidential聽veto.