Republican Senators have managed to get sideways with AIPAC on the Iran sanctions bill, as the powerful pro-Israel group conspicuously sided with Democratic cosponsor Robert Menendez as against 42 Republicans who earlier today released a letter to Harry Reid demanding an immediate vote. This is from the AIPAC statement:
We applaud Senator Menendez’s determined leadership on this issue and his authorship with Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL) of the Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act. We agree with the Chairman that stopping the Iranian nuclear program should rest on bipartisan support and that there should not be a vote at this time on the measure. We remain committed to working with the Administration and the bipartisan leadership in Congress to ensure that the Iran nuclear program is dismantled.
I think it’s pretty safe to say Reid and Obama have won this round of skirmishing over Iran policy. Republicans clearly want a fight more than a win.
