Speechless.
Democrats rallied behind President Obama Thursday, successfully filibustering to preserve the deal he and international leaders negotiated to curtail Iran’s nuclear program, clearing the way for the White House to lift sanctions on the Islamic Republic next week.
House Republicans were attempting a last-ditch effort to derail the deal, with a vote expected later in the day certifying that the president broke the law governing Congress’s review of the Iran deal. But Senate GOP leaders have rejected that avenue of attack, and Mr. Obama is expected to consider the Senate vote enough backing to move ahead next week.
“This vote is a victory for diplomacy, for American national security, and for the safety and security of the world,” the president said in a statement declaring victory after the Senate vote.
He claimed a mandate out of the result, even though he only won minority support, with just 42 senators — all members of the Democratic Caucus — backing him.
Opponents said far from making the world safer, the deal will imperil Israel, ignite a new arms race in the Middle East and eventually spark a war.
“A deal that puts the Iranian regime and its terrorist allies one turn of a screwdriver away from a nuclear weapon and a means of delivering it across the oceans makes war more likely,” said Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, president pro tempore of the Senate.
Four Democrats joined all 54 Republicans in opposing the deal, but they fell two votes shy of the 60 needed to head off the filibuster.
GOP leaders said they’ll hold a revote next week, but barring any changes from public pressure back home over the weekend, the outcome will be the same, and Mr. Obama will be able to lift U.S. sanctions next week.
HT: GetAClue