Two more US Senators have announced they will support the Iran nuclear deal which will bring the number of Senate Democrats backing the agreement to 36.
US President Barack Obama has so far secured the 34th Senate vote needed to sustain a veto of any congressional resolution disapproving the Iran nuclear agreement.
On Thursday, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) said they will back the Obama administration’s nuclear deal reached between Iran and the P5+1 countries in the Austrian capital of Vienna on July 14.
Democrats need 34 votes in the Senate, or 146 in the House of Representatives, now they have two more than is needed to sustain the veto Obama has promised.
The two senators issued separate statements, saying that while they think the deal is “imperfect,” it is a better option to support the agreement as the alternative is worse.
“I believe that supporting the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) negotiated between Iran and the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia and China is the best option," Warner said.
"While I believe there are several areas of concern with the agreement, the choice I ultimately had to make was between accepting an imperfect deal, or facing the serious ramifications if Congress rejected a deal that has the support of the rest of the world," he added.
Also, Booker said, "We have now passed a point of no return that we should have never reached, leaving our nation to choose between two imperfect, dangerous and uncertain options."
"Left with these two choices, I nonetheless believe it is better to support a deeply flawed deal, for the alternative is worse. Thus, I will vote in support of the deal," he added.
Congress later this month will vote on JCPOA under which Iran will be recognized by the United Nations as a nuclear power and will continue its uranium enrichment program, but some restrictions will be placed on the country’s nuclear program in exchange for the removal of sanctions.