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42 Senators Now Back Iran Deal, Ensuring Passage
Senators Will Be Able to Filibuster Anti-Deal Bill
by Jason Ditz, at antiwar.com
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Even that is a “best case scenario” for the anti-deal crowd, with the current numbers 42 pro-deal, 35 against deal, and 23 unannounced. Though it has been presented as a virtual lock that all Republicans would oppose the deal, lobby pressure to do so is probably going to relax considerably now that it has no chance.
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The Israel Lobby is still calling for new bills that aim to undermine US implementation of the deal, while unable to block it outright, and the Republicans have suggested they will still hold a vote in the House, even though without any chance of a Senate version that vote will have no real meaning.
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Congress had 60 days from the announcement of the P5+1 deal to vote on it, and planned to vote in mid-September, near the end of the deadline, figuring this would give lobbyists time to shore up a veto-proof majority. Instead, they’ve lost momentum dramatically, and the deal is secure.