Iran leader: We are in talks with ‘the major powers,’ not the U.S. Congress

By Karen DeYoung, Mike DeBonis, and Daniela Deane April 15 at 5:09 AM

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Wednesday that Tehran was negotiating a comprehensive nuclear deal with world powers, not the U.S. Congress, and called a Senate committee’s vote to give Congress the power to review any potential deal a domestic U.S. matter.

The Iranian leader, speaking in a televised speech in the northern Iranian city of Rasht, also repeated earlier statements that his country will not accept any comprehensive nuclear deal with world powers unless all sanctions imposed against it are lifted.

snip*During that period, lawmakers could vote their disapproval of the agreement. Any such resolution would have to clear a relatively high bar to become law, requiring 60 votes to pass and 67, or two-thirds of the Senate, to override a presidential veto.

The compromise avoided a potentially destructive showdown between the White House and Congress, as well as a possible free-for-all of congressional action that Obama has said could derail the negotiations while they are underway. It followed extensive administration lobbying on Capitol Hill, including phone calls from Obama and a closed-door Senate meeting Tuesday morning with Kerry and other senior officials.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iran-says-it-is-negotiating-with-world-powers-not-the-us-congress/2015/04/15/a828b2f0-e349-11e4-81ea-0649268f729e_story.html