White House Threatens to Veto Sanctions, Warns Bill Would Derail Diplomacy

December 20, 2013 | Edited by Benjamin Loehrke and Lauren Mladenka

Spoilers - 26 senators introduced legislation yesterday to add new sanctions against Iran, “dismissing warnings from the White House that such a move could scuttle efforts to peacefully resolve the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program,” write Joby Warrick and Karen DeYoung. “Iran has warned that any additional U.S. sanctions during the ongoing nuclear talks could doom chances for a deal.” Full story from The Washington Post. http://wapo.st/1c78kVa

Veto threat - “It is entirely unnecessary to potentially disrupt, or derail entirely, diplomacy,” said White House spokesman Jay Carney yesterday about the new sanctions bill. “We don't think this [bill] is necessary. We don't think it will be enacted. If it were enacted the President would veto it.”

--”We believe that it's important to allow this diplomatic opening to be explored. And the risk of passing new sanctions now is that it would -- doing so would derail the negotiations just when diplomacy is making progress.” Press briefing transcript here.” http://1.usa.gov/1bVVHbg

Leading Dems opposed - “At this time, as negotiations are ongoing, we believe that new sanctions would play into the hands of those in Iran who are most eager to see the negotiations fail,” write 10 Democratic committee chairs in a letter to Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). Hayes brown of Think Progress has the story. http://bit.ly/1kq1w8X

--Letter signatories: Sens. Johnson (SD), Feinstein (CA), Levin (MI), Mikulski (MD), Boxer (CA), Rockefeller (WV), Carper (DE), Leahy (VT), Wyden (OR) and Harkin (IA).http://bit.ly/1dWzxc3

The bill - S.1881: “A bill to expand sanctions imposed with respect to Iran and to impose additional sanctions with respect to Iran.” Sponsors: Sens. Menendez (D-NJ), Ayotte (R-NH), Begich (D-AK), Blumenthal (D-CT), Booker (D-NJ), Cardin (D-MD), Casey (D-PA), Collins (R-ME), Coons (D-DE), Corker (R-TN), Cornyn (R-TX), Cruz (R-TX), Donnelly (D-IN), Gillibrand (D-NY), Graham (R-SC), Hagan (D-NC), Johanns (R-NE), Kirk (R-IL), Landrieu (D-LA), McCain (R-AZ), Moran (R-KS), Pryor (D-AR), Roberts (R-KS), Rubio (R-FL), Schumer (D-NY) and Warner (D-VA). http://1.usa.gov/1bV2PYH

Effect of sanctions -Key U.S. senators could kill the Iran nuclear deal with new sanctions, says Steve Clemons. Watch the interview on The Rachel Maddow Show here. http://on.msnbc.com/1bV4HAO

Editors’ note - Early Warning will be offline for the holidays, starting Monday. We’ll resume our regular schedule on January 2.

--To get you in the holiday spirit, here’s a video of the British dropping a 3MT nuclear bomb off the shores of Christmas Island in 1958. http://bit.ly/1cUiKaV

Conduct unbecoming - “The Air Force general who was fired from command of U.S. land-based nuclear missile forces had engaged in ‘inappropriate behavior’ while on official business in Russia last summer, including heavy drinking, rudeness to his hosts and associating with ‘suspect’ women,” reports Robert Burns.

--“The events that led to the dismissal took place while Maj. Gen. Michael Carey was in Russia in July as head of a U.S. government delegation to a nuclear security training exercise. At the time, he was commander of the 20th Air Force, responsible for all 450 of the Air Force's Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles stationed in five U.S. states.” Full story in AP. http://apne.ws/Jasrqp

--Inspector General investigation of Maj. Gen. Michael Carey, October 2013. (pdf) http://1.usa.gov/19XGBSW

NDAA passed - The Senate approved the FY2014 defense authorization bill late last night, voting 84-15 for the bill. The act authorizes $607 billion in spending on defense and nuclear weapons programs. The bill now awaits President Obama’s signature. John Bennett at Defense News has the story. http://bit.ly/18X6rpG

Bomber disabled - Air Force mechanics have severed the back end of the 53-year-old B-52G Stratofortress “Sweet Tracy,” a deceptively named killing machine from the Cold War era. “By doing so, they permanently disabled the bomber’s ability to fly, and by extension its ability to launch nuclear weapons around the globe, a requirement of the New START treaty approved in 2011.” Paul Gilbin of Azcentral has the story. http://bit.ly/1i7wWkL

--See also: ”Once a Mighty Bomber, a B-52 Meets Its End in the Desert” by Ted Robbins for All Things Considered. http://n.pr/18D7IHL

Arms control - “U.S. Military Advantages and the Future of Nuclear Arms Control” by Steven Pifer for the Heinrich Boell Foundation. December 20, 2013. http://bit.ly/18D2yLT

In memory - Jerome Grossman, former chairman of the Council for a Livable World and a passionate advocate for the elimination of nuclear weapons, passed away at the age of 96. http://bit.ly/1bVNovS

Event:

--Joseph Cirincione, Ploughshares Fund, book discussion of Nuclear Nightmares: Securing the World Before It Is Too Late. January 4th @ 6:00 pm, at Politics and Prose in Washington DC. http://bit.ly/IPJMW5

Early Warning year in review:

Most read editions:
-- 1) “Einhorn: U.S. Should Prepare Itself for Negotiating Opportunity with Iran” (7/13/13) http://bit.ly/1bTfyHZ
-- 2) “Trident Renewal Not Affordable or Strategically Sound, says Former UK Defence Secretary” (2/7/13) http://bit.ly/1dpqUWW
-- 3) “Escalation and Rhetoric on the Korean Peninsula” (4/4/13) http://bit.ly/JHG2WD

Oddball stories from 2013:
--“Feds use Maine nuclear weapons bunkers to try to save dying bats.” http://bit.ly/Z7S5TO
--”That Time American School Kids Were Given Dog Tags Because Nukes.” http://bit.ly/10iRxcC
--”Preventing Ground Squirrel Damage to Missile Silos.” http://bit.ly/1a6JJOf
--”Nuclear Sub, yours for $6.98.” http://bit.ly/WGwJYU
--Much more Rodman news than we care to admit.