Backers of Iran sanctions struggle to build support in the Senate
The push to impose new economic sanctions on Iran is facing an increasingly uphill battle toward a veto-proof majority. Sen. Mark Kirk picked up a prominent supporter Monday â No. 3 Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer â for a bill that would ratchet up sanctions if diplomatic talks on curbing Iranâs nuclear program fall through. Story Continued Below But rounding up other Democrats may be harder and Schumerâs support is contingent, sources said, on other Democrats coming on board with him, like Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.). Schumer said his party is still discussing the best timing for a vote on an Iran bill, after President Barack Obama forcefully warned last week that he will veto any sanctions legislation that lands on his desk during the nuclear talks. âI intend to co-sponsor it,â the New York Democrat said Monday night. âBut weâre having a meeting among the Democrats and figuring out the best strategy.â Kirk (R-Ill.) said last week that he intended to release a bipartisan list of co-sponsors for his legislation as early as Monday night. But on Monday evening, Democrats were still being cagey about whether they will publicly defy the president. âWeâre at the beginning of the process,â said Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), a co-sponsor of sanctions legislation last year. âIâve looked at it. Weâll keep looking at it.â Asked if his name will be on the billâs co-sponsor list this time, Casey replied, âWe donât know yet.â Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), another previous backer of sanctions, is not expected to sign onto Kirkâs bill, according to a source familiar with the measure. Menendez also remains a wild card. He told New Jerseyâs Star-Ledger he might put off supporting the legislation, which in 2013 was known informally around the Hill as âKirk-Menendez.â The Senate Banking Committee is set to approve Kirkâs bill Thursday. But Kirk has been looking for seven Democrats to join him and six Republicans in defiance of the presidentâs Iran negotiations, hoping to send a bipartisan message to Obama rather than a party-line vote that has no chance of overcoming a veto. On the day Kirk had hoped to introduce his sanctions bill, 11 members of the Senate Democratic Caucus introduced a resolution that said they are prepared to vote on more sanctions, but only if talks fall apart. âFor those who agree that the sanctions bill in the Banking Committee is detrimental, this resolution provides an option in support of diplomacy,â said Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who wrote the measure with Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). For Kirk, finding Republican supporters hasnât been a problem â even among those who support a separate approach proposed by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) that would require Congress to approve or reject any deal with Iran. âIâm definitely on it,â Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said of Kirkâs bill. Graham is also working closely with Corker. Senate Republicans leader intend to give both measures a vote on the Senate floor in the near future, perhaps as early as February.