Republicans to Iran: agreement will not oblige us
Republicans to Iran: agreement will not oblige us
47 Republican Senators sent a letter to Iran’s leaders, warning that they will not be obliged to honor any nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, as soon as Obama’s term is over.
Mar 09, 2015, 01:17PM | Tom Dolev
via Israel News – Republicans to Iran: agreement will not oblige us – JerusalemOnline.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Photo Credit: AP / Channel 2 News
While negotiations between Iran and the world powers to reach a nuclear agreement continue, tonight (Mon) a group of 47 Republican Senators sent an open letter to Iran’s leaders, warning that any agreement that might be reached with the Obama administration will not oblige his White House successors with the end of his term in 2016.
The initiator of the letter was newly-elected Senate member Tom Cotton, who managed to get senior officials from the Republican party to sign, including some who may run for President next year: Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul. The aim of the letter is not only to deter Iran from signing an agreement, but also to pressure the White House, who is working on the issue under the supervision of Congress.
The letter, addressed to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, states: “It has come to our attention while observing your nuclear negotiations with our government that you may not fully understand our constitutional system… Anything not approved by Congress is a mere executive agreement.”
Will Congress obstruct the deal? Archives Photo Credit: Reuters / Channel 2 News
“The next president could revoke such an executive agreement with the stroke of a pen and future Congresses could modify the terms of the agreement any time,” they added. Through the letter, Republicans are trying to bypass the Obama Administration, whose representatives are continuing efforts to reach a deal with Iranian representatives in Geneva. However, international arms control sources say that it will be very tough for Congress to change or annul any such deal.
The negotiations with Iran have become a major part of the Republicans’ campaign regarding the 2016 elections. Former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush, for example, came out strongly against the talks in a speech held in Chicago last month, while Former Governor of Texas, Rick Perry, published a video in which he criticizes the negotiations and calls on Congress to oversee the agreements.
The letter is the last in a series of actions taken by Republicans, in an attempt to ensure Congress’s part in any future agreement, if and when it is reached. President Obama has previously addressed the issue, threatening that if the Republican-controlled Congress will vote against the deal, he will use his veto power.
From
The open letter, led by Sen. Tom Cotton (R., Ark.), explains how the U.S. Constitution works, according to the Weekly Standard, which excerpted the letter:
“It has come to our attention while observing your nuclear negotiations with our government that you may not fully understand out constitutional system. Thus, we are writing to bring to your attention two features of Constitution–the power to make binding international agreements and the different character of federal offices–which you should seriously consider as negotiations progress,” the senators write.
“First, under our Constitution, while the president negotiates international agreements, Congress plays the significant role of ratifying them. In the case of a treaty, the Senate must ratify it by a two-thirds vote. A so-called congressional-executive agreement requires a majority vote in both the House and the Senate (which, because of procedural rules, effectively means a three-fifths vote in the Senate). Anything not approved by Congress is a mere executive agreement,” the letter continues.
“Second, the offices of our Constitution have difference characteristics. For example, the president may serve only two 4-year terms, whereas senators may serve an unlimited number of 6-year terms. As applied today, for instance, President Obama will leave office in January 2017, while most of us will remain in office well beyond then–perhaps decades.”
“What these two constitutional provisions mean is that we will consider any agreement regarding your nuclear-weapons program that is not approved by the Congress as nothing more than an executive agreement between President Obama and Ayatollah Khamenei. The next president could revoke such an executive agreement with the stroke of a pen and future Congresses could modify the terms of the agreement at any time.”
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WarSclerotic 
March 9, 2015 at 5:17 PM
As if the Iranians were serious about honoring the treaty in the first place
http://www.madisdead.blogspot.co.il/2014/01/a-mini-5-1-question-quiz-for-secretary.html
Answer to question 3
Iranians: Geneva is ‘Treaty of Hudaybiyyah’
by CLARE M. LOPEZ
Although it is doubtful that any of Kerry’s advisers is even remotely familiar with this key episode in the accounts about Muhammad and the early Muslims, the Center for Security Policy explained the story in its 2010 book, “Shariah: The Threat to America.” The context is about situations in which Muslim forces might lawfully enter into a treaty or truce with the enemy. With troubling ramifications for current day negotiations, those situations demonstrate the centrality and importance of deceit in any agreement between Muslims and infidels. As it is recounted, in the year 628 CE, Muhammad (whose forces already controlled Medina) agreed to a 10-year truce with the pagan Quraysh tribe of Mecca, primarily because he realized that his forces were not strong enough to take the city at the time. Islamic doctrine in fact forbids Muslims from entering into a jihad or battle without the reasonable certainty of being able to prevail. In such cases, as with Muhammad, Muslims are permitted to enter into a temporary ceasefire or hudna, with the proviso that no such truce may exceed 10 years (because that’s the length of the agreement Muhammad signed). And so, Muhammad agreed to the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah. But just two years later, in 630 CE, now with some 10,000 fighters under his command, Muhammad broke the treaty and marched into Mecca.