Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues to express a deep concern about the ongoing negotiations with Iran over the country's nuclear capabilities. As many of my colleagues have noted on the floor of this House, preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon is critical to securing peace in the region and protecting U.S. interests, including our close ally Israel. It was good to hear Secretary Kerry's recent commitment not ``to shave anywhere at the margins in order to just get an agreement'' and to work for an agreement that will pass scrutiny. However, media reports from the negotiations in Vienna indicate that Iran has tried to renegotiate the previously released framework and continues to demand further concessions from international negotiators. Among the latest demands from Tehran is that all United Nations sanctions against the country, including the ban on the import or export of conventional arms, be lifted as part of any deal. Well, I have a response to that demand: unacceptable. Lifting the arms embargo would serve only to further destabilize the Middle East and accelerate Iran's arming of Shiite militias. The Iranians have also sought to keep hidden Iran's current and previous efforts to gain nuclear weapons capability. How can the international community know with certainty that Iran is complying with an agreement to reduce significantly its enrichment activities if the full extent of these activities is kept secret?…”