House Armed Services chairman says Trump should delay deadline for Iran deal

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) said on Sunday that President Trump should delay his deadline for pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal to give European allies a chance to add measures that the president wants.

Thornberry said it’s hard to say whether the Europeans could add new provisions to the nuclear deal, but they should be given the chance to try.

“Maybe the best thing is for the president to delay a bit more his deadline of this month and put the French and the British up to the test about whether it is possible to get this other sort of agreement,” Thornberry told “Fox News Sunday.”

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He also warned that Iran is an adversary that can’t be fully trusted.

“One of the things going on here, and [Israeli] Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu is exactly right, the Iranians always cheat and lie,” Thornberry added.

Even though Thornberry said he was originally against the Iran nuclear deal, he said he would counsel against pulling out of the Iran deal.

“I’m not necessarily opposed to sticking with this deal forever but you need to have a clear idea about next steps if we are going to pull out,” Thornberry said.

Trump said he would choose whether to withdraw from the deal on May 12, the next date the accord needs to be renewed by the president.