Senate Republicans Cast Doubt on Trump's Iran Peace Deal
Lawmakers, including the president's closest allies, slam the emerging agreement as undermining Trump's own war goals.
Senate Republicans cast doubt on the viability of a potential peace deal between the United States and Iran over the weekend as President Trump doubled down in support of his administration's negotiations to end the nearly three-month-old war. U.S. and Iranian officials have described an emerging framework that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and in which Iran would commit to disposing of its highly enriched uranium. Iranian officials have also said that nuclear matters would be negotiated within 30 to 60 days.
"It doesn't make too much sense to me," Senator Thom Tillis, Republican of North Carolina, said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union." Tillis called the Iranians' commitment to reopening the Strait of Hormuz "questionable" without a finalized peace deal, adding that "there are a lot of things that need to be explained." On Saturday, Senator Roger Wicker, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, wrote on social media that a "60-day ceasefire — with the belief that Iran will ever engage in good faith — would be a disaster."
Mr. Trump shot back on social media on Sunday afternoon, calling any deal he would negotiate "good and proper" and saying that such criticism was coming from "losers, who are critical about something they know nothing about." He had announced on Saturday that the United States and Iran "largely negotiated" an agreement to end the war. The president's defensive response highlighted the unusual position of defending a deal against members of his own party.
Even some of the president's closest allies have expressed misgivings about the emerging agreement. Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, wrote on social media on Saturday that striking a peace deal now would fuel the perception that the United States was recognizing Iran as a dominant force "requiring a diplomatic solution," calling such an outcome "a nightmare for Israel." The criticism from Graham, typically one of Trump's most reliable defenders, underscored the delicate political dynamics surrounding any agreement with Iran.
The Republican skepticism comes as Trump is hailing the agreement with Iran as groundbreaking, even as he admits it "isn't even fully negotiated." Without the details of a formal agreement, it remains unclear how soon normal shipping will resume and when oil prices will start to come down. The nuclear stockpile, enrichment capabilities, and missiles have not been discussed in the current framework, leaving major issues unresolved for future negotiations.
