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Extension of Iran Nuclear Talks Would Be a Hard Sell in Congress

(Los Angeles Times) Paul Richter - In its efforts to strike a nuclear deal with Iran, the Obama administration will face a challenge selling it at home. If negotiators fail to meet the Nov. 24 deadline, they may announce some kind of partial agreement. But they also are likely to seek time for further talks, officials say. That would leave the White House seeking congressional support for an extension. But the administration wouldn't want to disclose full details of the talks for fear it could provide ammunition for critics who worry that a bad deal would allow Iran to gain bomb-making know-how. "This would be very messy politically for the administration," said Jofi Joseph, who was a White House nuclear specialist earlier in the Obama administration. "There is a persuasive argument that we've given [the Iranians] a year and if they can't come to a strategic decision it's hard to say when they'll ever come to that decision," he said. "And unless we go back to more sanctions, we're going to give the Iranians the illusion that they can string this out forever."
2014-11-20 00:00:00
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