Gardner, Curbello, Ayotte react to report of “secret” loopholes in Iran nuclear deal

Legislative leaders reacted on Thursday to a report that found that the Obama administration negotiated “secret” loopholes and exemptions in the Iran nuclear deal.

The Institute for Science and International Security released a report that found that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) includes exemptions that would enable Iran to exceed the agreement’s cap on allowable amounts of uranium at nuclear plants.

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that the report is another example of the “false choice” that the administration presented to the American people in selling the nuclear deal.

“The American public deserves answers from the Administration, and I expect the State Department to release all relevant materials and to fully explain these allegations,” Gardner said.

The Institute for Science and International Security report concluded that, “the administration’s policy to maintain secrecy interferes in the process of establishing adequate congressional and public oversight of the JCPOA.”

U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) said that it is evident that the administration cut corners to provide “special concessions” to Iran that were undeserved.

“The administration’s dishonesty regarding this deal is deplorable, especially when the public elements of the negotiation favored Iran since the beginning,” Curbelo said. “This deal sets a dangerous precedent for future negotiations with other countries. The administration should come clean and admit to the American people that the JCPOA is not much more than a major giveaway to an anti-American, terrorist government.”

U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) said that the report underscores, once again, that the administration “bent over backwards” to accommodate Tehran and concealed information from the American people.

“While Iran continues to support terrorism, challenge the United States, and engage in malign activities throughout the region, the Obama administration has enabled Iran to evade limits on their nuclear program,” Ayotte said. “Rather than concealing information from the American people, the administration should explain why it believes it is in the national security interests of the American people to help the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism dodge limitations on its nuclear program.”