Obama is just one vote away from securing Iran nuclear deal

(Image credit: Isaac Brekken/Getty Images)

published 2 September 2015

On Tuesday, Sens. Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) said they will support the Iran nuclear deal, putting the White House just one vote short of the 34 senators needed to sustain his veto of the Senate's probable disapproval resolution. Coons had expressed strong reservations about the deal as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but said in a speech early Tuesday that while it "is not the agreement I had hoped for," it is the best realistic option to constrain Iran.

The deal also got the endorsement of two prominent House Democrats on Tuesday, Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), who has close ties to pro-Israel advocacy groups. Congress will open debate on the binding disapproval resolution next week, but if another senator goes on record as being in favor of the deal, the next hurdle for the White House will be getting 41 senators to support a filibuster, sparing President Obama a veto entirely.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.