Iran Nuclear Deal Becomes US Campaign Issue

Iran Nuclear Deal Becomes US Campaign Issue

WASHINGTON—

Voters in three crucial battleground states - Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania - overwhelmingly oppose the Obama administration-backed international nuclear deal with Iran, according to a recent opinion poll by Quinnipiac University. The candidates vying¹ for their respective party's nomination² for the 2016 presidential race are taking notice and staking out their own positions.

Presidential candidates have been out on the campaign trail in full force recently, having fun mingling³ with potential voters. But the serious issue keeps surfacing of how to best keep Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

Republicans oppose deal

Republican front-runner and business tycoon⁴ Donald Trump⁵ has repeatedly blasted the deal, saying America never wins at anything anymore.

“We make this horrible deal with Iran, which is a disgrace, and by the way could be one of the worst deals, depending on what ultimately happens. It could go down as one of the worst deals in history," he proclaimed.

But Trump also told NBC's Meet the Press that he is so good at looking at deals and contracts that he could police it so "tough" that the Iranians don't have a chance to cheat.

When Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee recently visited Israel, he echoed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netayahu, condemning⁶ the Iran nuclear deal as a clear and present danger to both Israel and the United States.

“This does not accomplish anything other than empowering a rogue⁷ nation – a nation that has shown consistently its intention to wipe other nations, including America, right off the map," he said.

Wisconsin governor and Republican candidate Scott Walker has similar beliefs, saying “As president, I will terminate the deal with Iran the first day, reinstate the sanctions, work with Congress to put more in place - more crippling sanctions - and convince our allies to do the same.”

Former Florida governor and Republican candidate Jeb Bush is more cautious.

“One thing I won’t do is say tear up the agreement on the first day.  But maybe you ought to check with your allies first and have your team in place," he said.

Most Democrats⁸ back deal

On the Democratic side, both leading contenders, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, support the deal. Enforcement will be key, says former Secretary of State Clinton.

"This does put a lid on the nuclear program, but we still have a lot of concern about the bad behavior and the actions by Iran," she said.

Sanders, a Democratic Senator from Vermont, also defended the deal, saying it is not perfect, but the only real alternative is war with Iran.

Some prominent Democrats have come out against the Iran nuclear deal.  But most Democrats back it, while most Republicans strongly oppose it.

“The number-one goal for Democrats is to avoid immediate⁹ hostilities," political analyst¹⁰ Stuart Rothenberg explains. "The number-one goal for Republicans is a little different.  They are willing to kind of push the envelope more because they so distrust Iran, and so don’t believe they are so convinced that Iran won’t live up to the deal.”

The U.S. Congress set itself a deadline of September 17 to hold a vote to either reject or approve the Iran nuclear deal.  If the deal is rejected, President Barack Obama has said he would veto that result.

For now, it appears unlikely Republicans could gather enough votes to override¹¹ a veto in either the Senate or House of Representatives.

1 vying   

adj.竞争的；比赛的

参考例句：

• California is vying with other states to capture a piece of the growing communications market.为了在日渐扩大的通讯市场分得一杯羹，加利福尼亚正在和其他州展开竞争。
• Four rescue plans are vying to save the zoo.4个拯救动物园的方案正争得不可开交。

2 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

3 mingling   

adj.混合的

参考例句：

• There was a spring of bitterness mingling with that fountain of sweets. 在这个甜蜜的源泉中间，已经掺和进苦涩的山水了。
• The mingling of inconsequence belongs to us all. 这场矛盾混和物是我们大家所共有的。

4 tycoon   

n.有钱有势的企业家，大亨

参考例句：

• The tycoon is on the verge of bankruptcy.那名大亨濒临破产的边缘。
• The tycoon has many servants to minister to his needs.那位大亨有很多人服侍他。

5 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

6 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。

8 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

10 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

11 override   

vt.不顾，不理睬，否决；压倒，优先于

参考例句：

• The welfare of a child should always override the wishes of its parents.孩子的幸福安康应该永远比父母的愿望来得更重要。
• I'm applying in advance for the authority to override him.我提前申请当局对他进行否决。