Ben Cardin says no on Iran nuclear agreement.
With Friday's announcements of Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado and Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, only five Democratic senators remain who have not declared their stances on the Iran nuclear agreement. Bennet said he will support the agreement. Cardin, who was instrumental in pushing the Nuclear Agreement Review Act that Congress passed to authorize itself a voice in assessing any agreement, said he opposes it.
Since Wednesday when Sen. Barbara Mikulski, Maryland's other Democratic senator, came out in favor of the agreement, the White House has been assured of the 34 votes needed to sustain a presidential veto of any Republican-initiated resolution of disapproval. However, the administration has, for more than a week, been seeking 41 supporters, enough to sustain a filibuster that would prevent any such resolution from even reaching the president's desk.
Three of the five undeclared senators are needed to get to 41. But Democrats actually need more than 41 senators in support of the nuclear agreement for a filibuster. Getting three more in support wouldn't be enough since agreement supporter Chris Coons of Delaware has said he wants an up or down vote in the matter, and Joe Manchin III of West Virginia—who has not yet stated his position on the agreement one way or the other—has said he would not back a filibuster.
Cardin said he doesn't think the agreement removes the threat of a nuclear weapon in Iranian hands, it just delays it:
"There's high risk in both directions, but I think the risk is higher in the long run by going forward with this agreement," Cardin told The Baltimore Sun. "Under this agreement, Iran is permitted to be able to enrich to a level that will take them extremely close to break out." [...]
"I'm not trying to convince anybody," said Cardin, who repeatedly praised the Obama administration for its efforts on the issue. "Everybody's trying to make their own judgment."
"There are things in this agreement that should not have been in this agreement," Cardin said. "Why do they need a stockpile of nuclear material? They don't need it for a civil purpose."
Michael Bennet's views and the Senate and House whip counts are below the fold.
Michael Bennet, a vulnerable Democrat up for re-election in 2016, said:
Sen. Michael Bennet
"Our primary objectives are to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon, make sure Israel is safe and, if possible, avoid another war in the Middle East," Bennet said in a statement first reported by The Denver Post.
"This agreement represents a flawed, but important step to accomplish those goals," added Bennet. [...]
"It is no surprise to me that there are sincere, heartfelt differences of opinion about the merits of this deal. 'There are no prophets in our time,' a former Israeli general told me. I agree. None of us knows what lies 10 or 15 years on the horizon," Bennet said in the statement.
Here are the five Senate Democrats who have not yet declared how they stand.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.)
Sen. Gary Peters (Mich.)
Sen. Ron Wyden (Ore.)
Sen. Maria Cantwell (Wash.)
Sen. Joe Manchin III (W. Va.)
Here is the whip count of the House from The Hill.
One hundred and seven House Democrats have declared themselves in support of the agreement. Fourteen are opposed.
Here is the list of eight representatives said to be "leaning yes":
• Rep. Terri Sewell (Ala.)
• Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (Calif.)
• Rep. Sanford Bishop (Ga.)
• Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (Mo.)
• Rep. Bill Pascrell (N.J.)
• Rep. Chaka Fattah (Pa.)
• Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (Texas)
• Rep. Derek Kilmer (Wash.)
And here are the 57 who are undecided or whose positions are unclear:
Rep. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.); Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (Ariz.); Rep. Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.)
Rep. Xavier Becerra (Calif.); Rep. Ami Bera (Calif.); Rep. Tony Cardenas (Calif.); Rep. Jim Costa (Calif.); Rep. Janice Hahn (Calif.); Rep. Jared Huffman (Calif.); Rep. Ted Lieu (Calif.); Rep. Grace Napolitano (Calif.); Rep. Raul Ruiz (Calif.); Rep. Loretta Sanchez (Calif.); and Rep. Norma Torres (Calif.)
Rep. John Carney (Del.)
Rep. Lois Frankel (Fla.); Rep. Gwen Graham (Fla.); Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (Fla.)
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii); Rep. Mark Takai (Hawaii)
Rep. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.); Rep. Bill Foster (Ill.); Rep. Daniel Lipinski (Ill.)
Rep. Pete Visclosky (Ind.)
Rep. Cedric Richmond (La.)
Rep. John Delaney (Md.); Rep. Steny Hoyer (Md.); Rep. Dutch Ruppersburger (Md.); Rep. John Sarbanes (Md.)
Rep. Bill Keating (Mass.); Rep. Richard Neal (Mass.)
Rep. Collin Peterson (Minn.)
Rep. Bennie Thompson (Miss.)
Rep. Lacy Clay (Mo.)
Rep. Ben Ray Lujan (N.M.); Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham (N.M.)
Rep. Joseph Crowley (N.Y.); Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (N.Y.); Rep. Charles Rangel (N.Y.).
Rep. Dina Titus (Nev.)
Rep. Joyce Beatty (Ohio); Rep. Marcia Fudge (Ohio); Rep. Marcy Kaptur (Ohio); Rep. Tim Ryan (Ohio)
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (Ore.)
Rep. Robert Brady (Pa.); Rep. Matthew Cartwright (Pa.)
Rep. David Cicilline (R.I.); Rep. Jim Langevin (R.I.)
Rep. Jim Cooper (Tenn.)
Rep. Henry Cuellar (Texas); Rep. Al Green (Texas); Rep. Gene Green (Texas); Rep. Marc Veasey (Texas); Rep. Filemon Vela (Texas)
Rep. Ron Kind (Wis.)
Fourteen House Democrats have declared themselves opposed to the agreement and two are leaning no—Alan Grayson (Fla.) and Brad Ashford (Neb.)