More than 180 Dems sign letter pushing Trump to re-certify Iran nuclear deal

A group of over 180 Democrats led by Reps. Ted Deutch (Fla.) and David Price (N.C.) sent a letter to President Trump on Wednesday urging him to re-certify the Iran nuclear accord to Congress ahead of the Oct. 15 deadline.

The letter, signed by all of the House Democratic leadership, says that decertification of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) could “embolden” Iran and compromise the international effort to contain the country’s nuclear development. 

“Absent credible and accurate information confirming a material breach, we are concerned that withholding certification of Iran’s compliance or walking away from the JCPOA would harm alliances, embolden Iran, and threaten U.S. national security,” the letter said. 

“If President Trump decertifies Iranian compliance without clear evidence of Iranian violations, it will jeopardize this united front against Iran,” Deutch said in a statement regarding possible actions by the administration to decertify Iran’s compliance. 

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Advisers to President Trump have reportedly unanimously pressed the president to decertify the Iran deal ahead of the deadline.

The president said earlier in September that he had made a decision on whether or not to continue with the deal, after bashing the Obama-era agreement on the campaign trail as “catastrophic,” and calling it an “embarrassment” to the U.S. in his first speech to the United Nations last month. 

“The JCPOA is an imperfect agreement, but to address the problematic provisions including the sunset clauses, we will need stay in lockstep with our global partners,” Deutch said.