Press Releases

 

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Gwen Moore (WI-04), Ranking Member on the Financial Services Committee’s Monetary Policy and Trade Subcommittee, today announced her support for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to diplomatically and peacefully prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Congresswoman Moore released the following statement:

 

"After careful consideration, I will support the Iran nuclear agreement. Over the past eighteen months, U.S. negotiators have worked diligently to bring about a deal between Iran and the P5+1 (U.S., U.K., Russia, France, Germany and China) that peacefully prevents Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. I applaud Secretary of State John Kerry and his team for their rigorous efforts in brokering this historic agreement.

 

"I supported sanctions and diplomatic efforts to reach an agreement because I understand that even the most crippling sanctions have not stopped Iran from obtaining nearly 20,000 centrifuges and building a stockpile of uranium that now put it on the threshold of developing a nuclear bomb. An Iranian regime that possesses a nuclear weapon is serious threat to our national security and Israel’s security as well. Though this agreement is far from perfect, I believe failure to approve this deal leaves Iran’s nuclear program completely unchecked and shrouded in secrecy. 

 

"In 2012, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said 'the only way that you can credibly prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, is to prevent Iran from amassing enough enriched uranium for a bomb.' This deal does just that. Iran’s stockpile of uranium would shrink to a fraction of its current supply. Their centrifuge cascades will be dismantled and thousands will be stored under international monitoring. Iran will remove and replace the core of its Arak facility, limiting its ability to produce plutonium for a bomb. Additionally, Iran’s nuclear supply chain will be continuously monitored and we will have the ability to put international sanctions back into place if Iran violates any terms of the deal.  

 

"Critics of the deal claim we simply cannot trust Iran. I too harbor a deep mistrust of Tehran, which is exactly why this deal is so critical. It was President Reagan who declared, 'We will never retreat from negotiations,' in defending his decision to negotiate with the Soviet Union. 'The fact that neither of us likes the other system is no reason to refuse to talk,' he said. 'Living in this nuclear age makes it imperative that we do talk.'

 

"Opponents also claim that even with this agreement, Iran will continue to be a destabilizing force in the Middle East, funding terrorism activities across the region and continuing to flagrantly violate the human rights of many of its country’s citizens. I share those concerns, but this deal was never meant to solve all outstanding issues with Iran, nor was it intended to turn them into an ally.

 

"This agreement is simply about denying Iran a path to a nuclear weapon. As General Martin Dempsey, Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, 'If followed, the deal [sic] addresses one critical and the most dangerous point of friction with the Iranian regime.' 

 

"Some continue to insist that the U.S. hold out for a better deal, one where Iran capitulates to all of our demands and agrees to endless restrictions without any sanction relief, but such an agreement simply doesn’t exist. We must remember that diplomacy rarely yields a perfect deal. 

 

"Next month, the House and Senate will have the chance to debate the Iran agreement. Not only will I support this historic deal, but I will also oppose any congressional efforts to block its implementation."