Pa. Sen. Casey will back Iran nuclear deal

Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) is supporting the nuclear deal with Iran, bringing Senate Democrats just two votes shy of ensuring they can uphold President Obama’s veto of legislation to kill the deal.  

In an 8,000-word statement distributed by his office on Tuesday, Casey said that the deal “will substantially constrain the Iranian nuclear program for its duration, and compared with all realistic alternatives, it is the best option available to us at this time. 

{mosads}“I will vote to support the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action because I believe it is the best option available to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon,” he continued, using the formal name for the agreement.

Casey’s support brings the total number of backers of the agreement to 32 — just two shy of the 34 needed to uphold the White House’s veto.

Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) is expected to announce his support of the agreement later on Tuesday afternoon, winnowing down the number of on-the-fence lawmakers before Congress gavels back into session next week.  

With the announcements from Casey, just 12 Democratic senators have yet to announce their position on the deal. In addition to the 34 needed to uphold Obama’s veto, supporters would surely hope to reach the 41 votes necessary to mount a filibuster against legislation to kill it.

Despite his support, Casey maintained he had concerns about the agreement, including the possibility that the billions of dollars Iran receives from the lifting of sanctions will go to fund terrorism throughout the Middle East.

To help fight those moves, Casey said that he would push for additional ways to discourage that sort of behavior.

“I will continue to advance legislative efforts that prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, exporting terrorism in the region, and committing human rights atrocities at home,” he said.