WASHINGTON
A leading Republican senator said Tuesday that he was confident Congress would reject a deal regarding Iran’s nuclear program that was signed last week with world powers.
Sen. John McCain said the unknown part of the process was whether there would be enough votes in the chamber to override President Barack Obama’s expected veto.
It is obvious that the 54 Republicans in the 100-member Senate will reject the deal, McCain said. The real question, he believes, is whether 13 Democrat senators will side with Republicans in order to cancel Obama's veto power.
Stressing that Iran would at some point acquire nuclear weapons, the forceful critic of the Obama administration's Syria policy said he was "deeply concerned about the ultimate result of this [the deal]."
"I predict now that it will be the nuclearization of the Middle East."
McCain, who delivered his remarks while speaking at the Washington-based Hudson Institute think tank, also expressed concerns that Iran continues to "control Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen in the region", saying it was a "paradox" for the U.S. to support the Iran deal for safety in the region while leaving Iran to continue to sway influence in those countries.
"It seems to me that we are making a historic mistake," he said, echoing the words of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been also very critical of the deal.
In the case of "reputed violations" of the deal by Iran, the next U.S. president would be faced with a very difficult sense of circumstances, McCain said.
The crucial 60-day review period for lawmakers began Monday.
The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution Monday endorsing the deal that placed long-term curbs on Iran's nuclear program.
President Barack Obama said the approval of the deal by Council would help his push to gain congressional support.
Obama, who said he welcomed a “robust” debate about the agreement, has threatened to veto any legislation that undermines the accord. He needs the support of 34 of the 100 senators to maintain his veto and protect the deal.
Congress requires a two-thirds majority vote in the House and Senate to override a presidential veto.
