January 9, 2014 | Quoted by John Hudson, Foreign Policy
Pressure Mounts on Reid as 58 Senators Back Iran Sanctions
In a surprise development in Congress, a long-building effort to impose new sanctions on Iran has reached a near-filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Despite months of White House lobbying against the bill, 58 Senators now support the so-called “Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act,” according to a Senate aide close to the process.
The bill's bipartisan backing puts Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in an awful bind. Either he defies President Obama and allows a vote on the legislation. Or he goes along with the White House — and takes on the majority of his fellow senators.
“The only way you can get a vote is if Reid allows it,” said a separate Senate aide. “Hence the question … Does Reid support sanctions — yes or no?”
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Close watchers of the bill disagree on what Reid will ultimately do. “Reid's in a tight spot,” said Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the pro-sanctions Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. “I think it's going to be hard for Reid to resist pressure and at least put it to a vote and see if there's sufficient support to override the veto.”