Former senator and potential Democratic presidential candidate Jim Webb said he is concerned that President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran will will allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon and enhance its stature in the Middle East.
"We know our interpretation of the outline of the agreement. Iran has given its interpretation, which is another reason why we need to scrub this whole idea," Webb said.
Webb called for the full consent of Congress to any deal reached with Iran.
As senator he made similar statements with both Presidents Bush and Obama.
Webb’s support of congressional oversight was not his only point. He followed up by rebuking the details of the framework, saying he believed it could embolden Iran’s standing in the region.
"The end result of this could well be our acquiescence in allowing Iran to develop a nuclear weapon. We don’t want that," Webb said.
Webb said he shared concerns with the negotiations, especially the verification process brought up by former Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger and George Shultz in an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal. The op-ed criticized the deal, and called for the United States to step back from the table. The Obama administration dismissed the advice.
Webb’s potential primary rival, Hillary Clinton, has yet to speak out on the deal besides an initial, vague statement. While the statement was mostly positive and seemingly supported the outline, one rich friend of Clinton’s hinted that she does not like what Secretary of State John Kerry brought back from the negotiating table in Switzerland.