A key United States Democratic Senator drew a stark contrast with the Obama administration over its diplomatic engagement with Iran’s regime on Tuesday, in a sign of lingering tensions in some corners of the party, The Hill reported.
In a speech on Tuesday, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) forcefully denounced the international nuclear accord reached with Iran’s regime last year, which President Obama has described as a pillar of his legacy.
Sen. Menendez, the former top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations, said: “So long as I have a voice and a vote, I will not yield to those who wish to break my resolve on stopping Iran’s illicit nuclear program.”
Sen. Menendez did not hold back from his criticisms on Tuesday, claiming that three missile tests Iran’s regime has conducted in recent months are proof the agreement has no teeth.
The agreement “has freed Iran to test the administration’s blind commitment to legacy,” Menendez said, according to The Hill. He added that “legacy is not a policy and hope is not a national security strategy and there is too much at stake to confuse the two.”
Menendez has repeatedly called for new sanctions legislation to serve as a backstop in case the Iranian regime breaks its obligations under the agreement.
“Now we’re only a short time into this process, and already I know we need new legislation to fill the space around the [nuclear deal] that has not been addressed,” he said on Tuesday.
