What do you think of the GOP’s letter to Iran?

Michael OlsonMichael Olson Mar 9, 2015
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“Congressional Republicans who don’t like the deal President Obama is trying to negotiate to end Iran’s nuclear program are now trying a new tactic: telling Iranians that they won’t honor it after Obama leaves office,” writes NPR’s S.V. Dáte.

The letter was written by freshman Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and co-signed by 46 of his GOP colleagues, including Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Obama, at a White House photo opportunity Monday, said he is proceeding with negotiations. “I think it’s somewhat ironic to see some members of Congress wanting to make common cause with the hard-liners in Iran,” he said. “It’s an unusual coalition.”

Today’s Question: What do you think of the GOP’s letter to Iran?

  • So let me get this right.. Some freshman Republican Senator with 7 weeks under his belt, takes the charge on the Senate and get’s all but 7 of his ideological GOTea ‘Rant-Wing’ brothers to sign a document, that they then take upon themselves to send to Iranian Leaders – Which warns them it is in their Nation of Iran’s best interest, to not trust any discussions they make with the Executive Branch of the United States..

    And this Freshman actually got all but 7 of his party.. 47 UNITED STATE SENATORS to go along with such an act of both back alley cowardice, and something akin to treason and fostering sedition.

    And the American people are supposed to be ok with that?…

    • Markus Speicher

      Yep…we’re okay with that. I applaud any member of the GOP (having the balls to effectively tell this President to piss off). Get use to it. There’s more to come.

      • J-dawg

        Being an adult and governing effectively is not about the size of one’s “balls.” Maybe we should start letting 12-year-olds vote since that seems to be the level many are on these days anyway.

        • Markus Speicher

          Okay…let’s be candid. You and I are diametrically opposed politically, socially, economically and constitutionally. There is nothing you can say or example you could provide to ever change my mind about Mr. O. I despise him. Not because he is black (mixed race actually), I despise him because he has destroyed the very thing that allows you and I to disagree. Freedom of speech.

          Fact: Mr. O is a Marxist communist. Virtually ALL of Obama’s main influences in life were communists and socialists who believed in transforming America into a socialist “paradise.” As gutless as the GOP is (at this point in time) at least someone had the courage of their conviction to confront the worst president the nation has ever known.

          Obama’s links to hardcore anti-American people and groups is so pervasive that had he applied to work at the White House prior to becoming president, he would NOT have received a security clearance.

          Let’s just leave it at that. My vote negates yours and vise versa. If this president dropped dead in the street today, tomorrow, a week or a year from now. I would dance in the street and piss upon his grave.

          • J-dawg

            If he destroyed free speech, how are you not arrested yet?

          • Yanotha Twangai

            The fact that you consider it a fact that Obama is a Marxist reveals that you do not understand the difference between a fact and an opinion and disqualifies your comments from being taken seriously.

            To educate you: the core tenet of Marxism is the abolition of private property. Is he advocating that? No? Then he’s not a Marxist. In fact, he’s not even a socialist, since he doesn’t advocate state ownership of the means of production. He’s not even far left. If he were, why do folks on the left wing of American politics continue complain that he’s not liberal enough? Why would he have taken single-payer off the table when health care reform was being hammered out, if he really is on the far left?

          • Markus Speicher

            Let me educate YOU about Marxist Communism…
            My mother was born and lived in Leipzig Germany (East Germany) from 1948 to 1972. She escaped and left two younger sisters behind. Her sisters were terrorized by the Stasi for decades because she fled. I learned first hand what communism is and what it does to people and family. Your love affair with this miscreant man-child underscores either your stupidity or ignorance about the single most insidious political ideology ever hatched. Barack Obama is a product of this ideology and that is an historical fact.

          • Yanotha Twangai

            I actually agree with you that Marxism is a severely misguided ideology that has
            caused vast amounts human suffering whenever it has been tried. And I get that you hate Obama and his policies. The fact remains, however, that those policies do not fit the definition of Marxism. Your critique of him would carry more weight if you didn’t make the mistake of calling him a Marxist. You’re just as wrong about that as are the liberals who accuse the GOP of being fascists.

          • Yanotha Twangai

            Furthermore, where did you get the ridiculous idea that I have a “love affair” with Obama? You seem to think that the mere fact that I disagree with you makes me an extremist on the other side.

            As for influence, a person can be influence by lots of schools of thought without necessarily embracing any of them completely. I will admit to being influenced by Marxism, to the extent that I agree that unregulated, jungle-rules capitalism is detrimental to societal well-being, but that doesn’t mean I subscribe to Marx’s whole program. Experience in a variety of countries around the world (including ours) shows that intelligently regulated capitalism, with a small amount of redistribution and a social safety net to prevent the unlucky from falling into utter destitution, has the best track record for maximizing the overall well-being of humankind. Obama seems to agree with me about that. But of course, when one is a knee-jerk ideologue (as you seem to be), that kind of nuance is lost, and a person with my opinions appears to be either a Marxist (because I favor some redistribution) or a plutocrat (because I favor generally free markets). You would do well to actually research the opinions you reject. It would make you a more effective debater.

  • AngstAMillion
  • Sue de Nim

    In any other context, undermining the government for political purposes would be called treason. Why not in this context? Can you imagine the outrage by the Republicans if the Dems had done something like this to Bush? Oh, right. Bush never wanted to negotiate. He just wanted excuses to go to war.

  • Gary F

    So Nancy Pelosi meeting with Assad in 2007 was different, right?

    I have to keep reminding myself that this administration is special.

  • Gary F

    And so little outrage over our former Sec of State not following proper protocol and laws with email.

    And so little outrage over our former Sec of State accepting money from foreign governments to a foundation that won’t supply it’s tax statements.

    Treason?

    • Yanotha Twangai

      Conservatives have been accusing liberals of treason since long before Ann Coulter’s 2003 book by that title. Seems to me that in this case liberals are merely pointing out that it’s a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

  • Pearly

    Hang ’em high

  • whitedoggie44

    The Wednesday London Times, editorial stated it best, “the clock ticks, Obama’s head remains in the sand”. Abdication rather than confrontation.

  • armanmakhzani@gmail.com

    what could one think about a bunch american fanatics? two countries are trying to give peace a chance and we have hardliners from both sides trying to destroy it which would be bad for both countries! do we not have enough problems in the world? try to resolve problems not add to them!!

  • Gary F

    So why doesn’t Obama want to send this treaty to the Senate and have it ratified? Isn’t that how it’s laid out in The Constitution? What is he afraid of? We might read it?

    • kevins

      Um..perhaps because it has not been negotiated yet?

  • bearfilm

    And if a house be divided against itself,…. Any family, small or great,
    that house cannot stand; its contentions and discords will soon bring it down from a comfortable and flourishing situation, to a very distressed one; Matthew 12:25.

  • John Dilligaf

    I think, if it were played correctly, it makes the president’s hand stronger in negotiations. He can state perfectly honestly that Iran needs to give up more in order to be acceptable to the American people’s representatives.

    It’s like the car dealer saying, “Let me go and talk to my manager. Nope, I’m sorry we can’t accept that price, but here’s what we can do.”

    • Yanotha Twangai

      Except that, pursuing your analogy, what happened is this: the manager barged into the sales room and said, “Don’t bother dickering with that salesman, because he has no control over the price.” It’s more likely that the deal will be scuttled entirely, which is apparently what the signers of that letter want.

      • John Dilligaf

        The president “shall have the power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur”

        emphasis added

  • Bobbie B.

    Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the United States Constitution, includes the Treaty Clause, which empowers the President of the United States to propose and chiefly negotiate agreements, which must be confirmed by the Senate,
    between the United States and other countries, which become treaties
    between the United States and other countries after the advice and
    consent of a supermajority of the United States Senate.
    The Senators are correct. Obama made a deal with Cuba with NO discussion with Congress. Ask yourself how many Cubans have been murdered in the past 6 years by castro. Now Obama wants a deal with the world top leader of funding terrorism with no teeth in the deal. seriously, Obama is doing this only to get another false Peace Prize..so sad we voted in a loser. Hilary at least would lie and say she is doing it for Women’s Rights and the media would give her another free pass on her hypocrisy.

  • Muzak

    I think Repubs desperately want us to go to war against Iran, as per Cheney and company did over a decade ago. The way they behave with our Black President works against them as far as I am concerned, they also guarantee a higher evaluation of President Obama both from our historians and abroad.

    Let’s hope Americans inflict devastation against them in the next election before it’s too late.

  • Albert Sharptin

    Look folks, Obama can’t negotiate anything nor has he shown his word is good. Where is the Red line he said Assad couldn’t cross? He can’t even stop the welfare low functioning anti-police protestors and their violence in Fergusson,MO with the shooting-ambushing two police officers. He sent in 50 FBI agents to investigate officer Darren Wilson, he allowed Al Sharpton to race bait and encourage more protesting and violence that ensued. He said nothing when 30 small business owners lost their shops from looters. Now when our police are ambushed, he only sends out a childish Tweet and then he goes on the Kimmel show to crack jokes.
    Obama’s negotiating with Iran is stupid. No one reduces sanctions that got Iran to even consider talking, to get a deal that allows them to continue and hide their actions. Iran has defied the UN sanctions and the rules to not add centerfuges, three years later they sit back and laugh at us. This is what happens when uneducated voters elect someone with no background or experience, nothing but far left extreme ideology as learned by his mentors, the Marxist and racists ( Jt Marshall and Rev. Wright) according to his own words in his approved books.
    Obama simply has no leadership ability but for those hacks that deny the truth, all they can do is cry ” racism_ unfair treatment of Obama..they always use the term ” first BLACK President ” when defending his stupidity.
    Recent polls show less than 1% of US police officers and less than 7% of our military would ever vote for him if it was allowed for a third term. America is waking up…Progressive ideology is a dead end. There are no countries that endorse Progressivism/ socialism that ever succeeded. Iran is our enemy and Obama would rather have you believe otherwise.

  • Yanotha Twangai

    The more I hear about this, and how close the administration appears to be to negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran, the more convinced I am that this letter was just a cynical ploy. The GOP’s greatest fear is that Obama will have some impressive foreign policy success that will prove that they were wrong about him. This letter gives them a way of taking some credit for the deal when it happens. They’ll say, “The deal would have been much worse, but for our actions in warning against a weaker deal.” No one will be able to prove one way or another that the the letter had any significant impact on the actual outcome, but this gives their supporters an excuse for not giving the Obama administration full credit.