McConnell Will Move Iran Bill Forward Without Controversial Amendments From Senate Hawks

Source: Huffington Post

WASHINGTON -- In a rebuke to the hawks of his party, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) indicated on Tuesday that he will move forward with a Senate bill on the Iran nuclear agreement by limiting votes on amendments that demand more conditions from the Iranians.

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Late last week, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) surprised his party's leadership when he used an obscure parliamentary procedure to force a vote on a package of amendments further limiting the president's ability to facilitate sanctions relief and cementing "anytime, anywhere" inspections of Iran nuclear sites, as well as other proposed tweaks. Also included was an amendment from Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) that required Iran to recognize Israel as a Jewish state before any deal was finalized. Because of the way Cotton filed his amendment package, the Senate could not vote on any of the 66 pending amendments before addressing his proposed changes.

Corker pointed to Cotton’s move as a turning point in what had been a bipartisan effort to pass an Iran oversight bill that wouldn’t ultimately die on the president’s desk. “The procedural moves [last] Thursday certainly ended our discussions that were going in a very constructive and positive way relative to amendments,” Corker told reporters on Tuesday after the luncheon with his caucus. “You know, sometimes people forget, the Senate operates by unanimous consent. While you have the majority and you set the agenda, the other side gets a vote on which amendments are going to be heard.”



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