SENATOR DAN SULLIVAN REPUBLICAN -ALASKA ADDRESSES IRAN DEAL ON SENATE FLOOR
Dan Sullivan was sworn in as Alaska’s eighth United States Senator on January 6, 2015. Sullivan serves on four Senate committees vital to Alaska: the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee; the Armed Services Committee; the Environment and Public Works Committee; and the Veterans' Affairs Committee.
Prior to his election to the U.S. Senate, Sullivan served as Alaska’s Attorney General and Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. As Alaska's Attorney General, Sullivan’s number one priority was protecting Alaskans, their physical safety, financial well-being, and individual rights – particularly Alaska’s most vulnerable. During his tenure he spearheaded a comprehensive statewide strategy – the “Choose Respect” campaign – to combat Alaska’s high rates of domestic violence and sexual assault. Under Sullivan’s leadership, the Department of Law also undertook an aggressive strategy of initiating and intervening in litigation aimed at halting federal government overreach into the lives of Alaskans and their economy.
As Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Sullivan managed one of the largest portfolios of oil, gas, minerals, renewable energy, timber, land, and water in the world. Working closely with Alaska’s Governor and state legislature, Sullivan developed numerous strategies that spurred responsible resource development, energy security, and a dramatic increase in good-paying jobs across a number of critical sectors in the Alaska economy. He also developed a comprehensive plan to streamline and reform the state’s regulatory and permitting system.
Sullivan is one of a select number of Alaskan attorneys who has held judicial clerkships on both the highest federal and state courts in Alaska. He served as a judicial law clerk for Judge Andrew Kleinfeld of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Fairbanks, Alaska and for Chief Justice Warren Matthews of the Alaska Supreme Court in Anchorage, Alaska. Sullivan also served as a judicial law clerk/intern for Judge James L. Buckley on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Sullivan has a distinguished record of military and national security service. He is currently an infantry officer and Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves. Over the past 21 years, Sullivan has served in a variety of command and staff billets on active duty and in the reserves, including: TRAP Force Commander and 81mm mortar Platoon Commander, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable); Weapons Company Executive Officer, Second Battalion, Fifth Marines; Commanding Officer, Delta Company, Anti-Terrorism Battalion; Executive Officer, Echo Company, Fourth Reconnaissance Battalion; and Commanding Officer, 6thAir Naval Gunfire Liaison Company (ANGLICO). In 2004, Sullivan was recalled to active duty for a year and a half to serve as a staff officer to the Commander of U.S. Central Command, General John Abizaid, spending substantial time deployed in the Middle East, the Horn of Africa, and Central Asia. In July 2013, Sullivan was recalled to active duty to serve with a Joint Task Force in Afghanistan focusing on dismantling terrorist networks and criminalizing the Taliban insurgency.
Sullivan served in the Administration of President George W. Bush as the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Business under Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. He focused on fighting terrorist financing, and implementing policies relating to international energy, economic, trade, finance, transportation, telecommunications, and Arctic issues. Sullivan also served as a Director in the International Economics Directorate of the National Security Council staff at the White House.
Sullivan earned a B.A. in Economics from Harvard University in 1987 and a joint law and Masters of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University in 1993. Dan and his wife Julie Fate Sullivan were married over 20 years ago in Julie’s hometown of Fairbanks, Alaska. They have three teenage daughters: Meghan, Isabella and Laurel.
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but was present I want a speak this afternoon
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about 10 most important issues facing the United States Senate
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today for weeks maybe months maybe even years
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and that's the debate we're having over there and
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nuclear agreement how many my colleagues have already spoken very eloquently very
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about this agreement I want to give one example my colleague from maine senator
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King was on the floor the other day when I was presiding
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imploring us to fully debate the issue his
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he stated quote the truth emerges from the fire
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have an argument on an issue of this importance and I couldn't agree more
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we should debate this issue we should believe that this issue
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we should bring all the voices of the people we represent into this body
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to debate this issue some is present where to begin
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there is so much here so many issues we've seen some of them
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centrifuges enrichment
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inspections sanctions anytime anywhere
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inspections we have to examine all of that
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but I thought it was important to date a step back
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to take a look at some other big issues
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three in particular but I think are important as we start this debate
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first the role of the american people
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and this body in the congress with regard to this Agreement
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second the basic underlying premise
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up this Agreement the driving force that in many ways is behind this agreement
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and third the main goal
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as has been agreed to by the president by members of this body and what we
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should be trying to achieve
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with regard to this Agreement so first the role of the american people in this
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you miss present there's a can there's confusion
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it's been perpetuated by this administration that
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those of us who are asking questions who are skeptical of the agreement
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are being somehow partisan the president said that republicans
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no matter the deal will disagree with him will not go for him will not vote
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and in some ways he seems to be making this
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about his personal agenda but with all due respect to the president
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Iran nuclear agreement is much bigger
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and President Obama much bigger
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president will be gone in eighteen months
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the american people will have to live with the consequences of this Agreement
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for decades that's why it's so important
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that the congress debates and approved
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or disapprove this Agreement
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and yet had the Obama administration had its way
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we would not we would not be doing that today
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what we're doing right now debating this Agreement
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in fact throughout this process from the very beginning
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they've been dismissive up the raw love the american people through their
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representatives in Congress
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Tollway N to bring clarity
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to bring wisdom to what the screamin
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is all about just few months ago miss president
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the president said that he did not want the congress to be involved at all
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we started debating an act on this floor
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to provide this body with an opportunity to review and approve
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he said he would be doing no involvement from the american people
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the administration only backed off on a bipartisan group
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have senators Democrats and Republicans stood firm
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a veto-proof majority and said no the American people need to be
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read into this Agreement so that was when we pass Iran nuclear
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Review Act I personally wouldn't have preferred that this be viewed as a
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treaty by the administration
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but we're reviewing it now under that law
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in the president the sector Carey
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have taken the deal to the UN Security Council again
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before congress in the american people
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even started to debate the issue
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russians Chinese were voting on this agreement before we had the opportunity
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members of this body Democrats and Republicans
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implore the secretary don't do this it's an affront to the american people
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they didn't listen and finally the president saying
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even before we debate if we're not in agreement with him he's gonna veto
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whatever we do in this body up miss present this is not how the federal
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government disposed to conduct foreign policy
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throughout the history this great body
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weighing in and voting an international agreements
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international treaties I've this magnitude
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has been the Senate's most important job
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the heart and soul what we do in this body
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sadly two former members at this party the president
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and the Secretary of State have actively fought against
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our involvement but Alexander Hamilton knew better
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the Federalist Papers he spoke about the critical role
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the senate and foreign affairs
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he warns against the president
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having sole authority over issues have such delicate and momentous combine
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he argued vigorously for the senate to have a say
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and critical foreign policy and national security issues
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in our history and the Constitution
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reflect this that's where we come in
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and that's why we're debating this so in examining the agreement mister president
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it's important understand a look at the bigger picture what's the driving force
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what's the underlying premise what's the full %ah sophy
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that's motivating this Agreement
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it's not hard to discern from the beginning at the Obama administration
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the president and his team
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have been focused on transforming our relationship with Iran
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to bring it into the community a respected nations
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transforming the Middle East president
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has talked about this a number times he highlighted this
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in a speech the United Nations in 2013
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and it's here again in the tax
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up this Agreement the text to the agreement
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States the p-5 plus one
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expresses its desire to build a new relationship with Iran
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that's in the agreement this is a ball
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an ambitious goal no doubt but also dangerously naive
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interestingly there's no reciprocal statement
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in the agreement by Iran
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about Iran wanting to have a new relationship
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with the United States where the West we want it
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they don't seem to wanna in fact
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with its leaders regularly each still chanting death to the amid
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death to America death to Israel even after the signing this agreement
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it seems very clear that Iran does not want a new relationship
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in this is the biggest flaw the agreement it amounts to a high-stakes
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the highest I've stakes the security the United States
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that Iran will change its behavior and what I fear the most
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is if they don't change and there's no sign that they're going to
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by its own terms this Agreement
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within 10 years 1 able or an to have a much stronger economy
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is significant ballistic missile capability
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be on the verge of a nuclear bomb
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and still be the world's largest sponsor
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this is a huge risk for the security of our country
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and our allies in the Middle East but it didn't have to be this way
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this agreement could have mitigated these Rhys
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we do this all the time and diplomacy we tell countries that we negotiate with
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you improve your behavior you get rewarded
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incrementally step-by-step
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step by difficult step
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for example during the debate we had
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and Iran nuclear review agreement I of an amendment that was simple
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but was based on this issue
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sanctions would be lifted on Iran
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once a rant came off the list of countries that sponsor state terrorism
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simple improve your behavior
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you get rewarded but this Agreement does not do that
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instead when you look at
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the structure of this Agreement in a row
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it allows Iran to get almost all love the benefits
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up front almost half
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love this Agreement is about
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our obligations to lift sanctions in very very minute detail
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our obligations live sanctions on Iran
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within the next several months think about that mister president
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we had the leverage countries that negotiated this are among the most
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we had a rant on the ropes was strong american-led sanctions
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we had the leverage and we lost it
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with this Agreement on the hope
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that Iran will change its behavior and so far it's clear that their leaders
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did not get the memo and the change behavior
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run the new relationship iran is still
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destabilizing the Middle East holding americans hostage
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threatening Israel supporting terrorist groups like Hezbollah and others
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throughout the world
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in fact haran which is a nation
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that has had Imperial ambitions throughout the Middle East
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for centuries could very well accelerates
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its destabilizing activities as a result have the power
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and prestige that this Agreement provides up
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numbers present supporters up this agreement
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including the president are arguing that look the united states we've done this
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we negotiate with our enemies to a positive and
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president reagan did it with the Soviet Union
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you got a constructive deal but this is a flawed analogy
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both strategically and tack tactically
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when we negotiate with the Soviet Union
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it was the world's two superpowers it was the world's two superpowers they
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were armed with nuclear weapons
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similar military strength thousands of nuclear weapons
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we're bringing a nuclear pariah
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have nuclear powers this is very different
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and tactically Team Obama
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has never demonstrated the desire to walk away from this deal
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this wasn't the case for president reagan
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he famously walked away from the soviets
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in Reykjavik Iceland over verification
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issue on that IMF agreement this meeting is over
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President Reagan said to george shultz as secretary state
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when he thought we're giving away too much let's go george
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we're leaving said the president and they did
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they left a year later
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mikhail gorbachev came back to the table
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and agreed on-site inspections of its nuclear facilities
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American USSR sign the IMF treaty
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and soviet power began to unravel contrast that to the experience we've
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heard about in the last few months
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up these negotiations on the issue of conventional weapons
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and ballistic missiles the chairman the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin
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testifying from the armed services committee very recently
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he said quote under no circumstances
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should we be relieved pressure on Iran
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relative to ballistic missile capabilities
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and arms trafficking the number one military adviser
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to the president Nitin States but we did
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within seven days that statement we did in the embargo on conventional weapons
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and ballistic missiles
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is gonna be lifted as part of this agreement
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when the Russians and Chinese push this position at the very end to these
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sector Carey should've listened a general Dempsey's
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military advice and should have done what secretary schultz did
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should a walk to get a better deal
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finally miss present I want to conclude by underscoring what
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everybody from the president to members of this body
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have agreed should be the principal negotiation
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objective up this agreement
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that has always been to keep Iran from developing a nuclear weapon
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and from Desmet and to dismantle
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its nuclear capability in fact
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this body is waitin last year
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October march from 2014
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a letter written by sis 81 United States senators
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to the present in nine states about these negotiations
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was present I ask unanimous consent to
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submit the spar the record without consent has helped without objection
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the letter had a number benchmarks
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for the negotiators one stated sanctions quote
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must continue until a Rand a banded
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its efforts to build a nuclear weapon the letter then goes on
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to cite another critical basic
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goal the agreement it states quote
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we believe any agreement must dismantle
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Iran's nuclear weapons program and prevent it from
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ever ever having a uranium
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for plutonium path to a nuclear bomb
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81 senators last year
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stated that me repeat that mister president
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we believe any agreement must dismantle
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Iran's nuclear weapons program and prevent it from
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ever having you uranium for plutonium path to a nuclear bomb
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I agree with the eighty-one senators forty democrats
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forty republicans one independent who signed that letter
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72 those senators are still members of this body
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but they need awsome self
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are they sure that this goal has been achieved
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I read this entire agreement miss president
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I believe this call is not been achieved
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and that should deeply concerned
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all members the united states senate
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this present let me conclude by quoting someone I normally do not quote
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on the floor the United States Senate Iranian
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supreme leader Ayatollah Cup come I Khamenei
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who just this past Saturday stated the following:
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quote even after this deal
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our policy towards the arrogant United States
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will not change and then
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he led the crowd was before
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into channing death to america that mister president
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is the country that we're hoping
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and risking our future on
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that will change that we will have a
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quote new relationship with as the agreement states
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to the american people we will continue to debate this critical issue
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in the words my colleague from maine we will bring fire to the debate
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and the truth will emerge unfortunately
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here's one truth but I find self-evident
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haran is not changing
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anytime soon that's because this Agreement
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didn't force it to miss president are you before
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