There have been so many organizations of thoughtful, highly qualified people who have come forth in favor of the Iran nuclear deal (formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or JCPA) that it is hard to keep them all straight. Here is what some of the more important ones are saying about the deal.
The following letter is a response to Senator Charles Schumer's announcement that he intends to oppose the Iran nuclear deal. Read the reasoning behind his decision before reading my response to his decision.
Former Ambassador to the U.N. under George W. Bush, John Bolton, recently wrote an article for the Los Angeles Times explaining why we should reject a nuclear deal with Iran. He practically encouraged Israel to to attack Iran's nuclear facilities and said we should stand behind Israel's attack. Amidst a bunch of half-truths and wild speculation, John Bolton did actually say something worth paying attention to:
We now face a new worst-case scenario if Iran-hawks like Senator Tom Cotton manage to torpedo a nuclear deal with Iran. Proponents of the deal have argued that the Framework agreement was better than expected and that we should be happy if the final deal closely mirrors it while filling in some gaps. Iran gave up more than we expected it to and we are unlikely to get anything more. The hawks have said that the Framework is not good enough.
Bibi Netanyahu has just appointed hard right winger Ayelet Shaked to head Israel's Justice Ministry. Don't expect any Justice for Palestinians or African asylum seekers under the Shaked Justice Ministry--she has already demonstrated her contempt for Palestinian citizens of Israel. She let the cat out of the bag back in January 2014 when she responded to European countries that expressed their dismay at Israel's harsh treatment of Sudanese and Eritrean asylum seekers.
Disclaimer: I am both a Cornell alumnus and a staff member of Cornell. Everything I write in this post (and every post) represents my opinion and my opinion only. I have not and will not be paid by Cornell to write this post or any other post. I write this on my time and any attempt to portray what I write here as representing Cornell's position is patently dishonest unless Cornell's Administration explicitly states its agreement with me. I also do not know Assistant Dean Joseph Scaffido.
I am quite alarmed by your support for the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015, (S.615) otherwise known as the Corker-Menendez Bill at this time. Let's be realistic. Many, if not most, of the Senators who want to pass Corker-Menendez don't just want to have Congressional oversight of a nuclear agreement with Iran--they want to kill it and drive a stake through its heart. And many are probably doing this not because they think this is best for U.S.
Israel and the U.S. are at odds over two issues--how to deal with Iran's nuclear program and Israel's occupation of the West Bank. Below are key events that every American should know in order to understand how we got here. Of course, this list is incomplete--one could write a several hundred page book on these topics. And Israel's defenders will no doubt come up with a list just as long defending Israel's actions and highlighting the evil deeds of Iranians and Palestinians.
Bibi Netanyahu appointed a commission headed by former Supreme Court Justice Edmond Levy in 2012 to look at the legality of settlements in the West Bank. Surprise! Surprise!
