Given Trump’s comments about the Iranian nuclear deal, it’s not surprising that speculation has gone through the roof on its future, as reported by Julian Pecquet of AL Monitor:
Lawmakers have introduced a rash of Iran sanctions bills ahead of the election, both to score points with voters back home and to put political pressure on the Obama administration not to go too far with sanctions relief. [Tyler Cullis, a policy associate with the National Iranian American Council (NIAC),] said he now expects the incoming, Republican-controlled Congress to introduce less extreme legislation that may not blatantly violate the deal but could irretrievably harm it.
The pro-Israel lobby AIPAC “will thread that needle,” Cullis predicted. “And then you’re going to have a bill that’s going to be very tough for Democrats to vote against.”
Theoretically, the defeat of deal foes Mark Kirk, R-Ill., and Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., helps provide Democrats with a firewall to defeat problematic Iran bills (most bills need 60 votes to pass, and the Republicans will have 52 Senate seats if they win a Dec. 9 run-off in Louisiana). On the flip side, deal opponent Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is taking over as minority leader, adding to advocates’ distress.
“I think you’re going to see a much more measured approach from Republicans to knock a hole in it,” Cullis said. “And if a bill like that passes, it’s certainly the case that a President Trump will not spurn it, and he will sign it. It will cause immense damage to the sustainability of the nuclear deal.”
That bill would grant various authorities for sanction building to the President. Cullis’ thoughts on that matter?
“A Trump administration will be less reluctant to utilize those authorities,” Cullis said. “It’s a strange thing to say, but I think Donald Trump will be one of the more sane voices in a Trump Cabinet.”
Which is a reminder that the GOP is quite the chaotic entity at the moment, as they RINO-ize themselves further and further to the right – but the one Republican they can’t push out will be Trump.
While predicting Trump is a chump’s game, it’s not impossible that he’ll be more reasonable, in the end, than many members of his Cabinet – early speculation has former NYC Mayor Guiliani (who I think is in early stage dementia) and John Bolton (former UN Ambassador under Bush II), a lawyer and (ahem) diplomat who apparently never understood the Roosevelt dictum that begins “Speak softly …”, and (tellingly) is a commentator at Fox News, as members of the Cabinet. And a bizarre rumor that Palin, the master of incomprehensibility, might also make up a veritable Clown Cabinet. Anyone remember that idiot James Watt? Running a department based on your religious beliefs, rather than scientific evidence, was simply irresponsible – he should have been kicked out on his nose. Palin may do the same thing.
And then there’s the Congressional members themselves, with the usual spectrum of sanity.
Will the GOP put us back in danger by tearing up the agreement and reasserting sanctions? Do they seriously believe the rest of the world would back us?
Do they even care?
