Local Reaction to the Iran Nuclear Deal

INDIANAPOLIS -- Sen. Dan Coats says he’s “profoundly skeptical” of the nuclear agreement announced Tuesday between Iran and a group of nations led by the United States.

Coats, who serves on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, says he will carefully review the details of the deal before rendering a final opinion.  But he says he’s harkening back to a deal President Clinton made with North Korea, an agreement which ultimately resulted with that country obtaining nuclear weapons.

“I don’t want to see that same thing happen to Iran and so the words of the president don’t reassure me in saying, ‘Trust me, everything’s going to be good.  And by the way, I’m going to veto it if you don’t agree.’  That is not leadership,” Coats said.

But former Hoosier Congressman Lee Hamilton says while the deal might not be perfect, it’s better than no deal at all.

“If you do not have a deal, you have no constraints – or at least very limited constraints – on Iran’s pathway to a nuclear bomb,” Hamilton said.

A vote in Congress on the agreement is expected in September.