Introduced 3 days before the State Dept. officially delivered the text of the P5+1–Iran nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA, this resolution expressed ‘firm disapproval’ of the JCPOA and reaffirmed Congress’s commitment to both preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and supporting strategic allies, including Israel. Congress’s mandated 60-day period to review the JCPOA did not begin until 7/20, although the text of the deal was already widely available in the media.
Because the law mandating Congress’s review period requires any legal disapproval to be expressed by a vote on a joint resolution, this measure merely ‘set the stage,’ according to a statement released by Roskam on 7/17. It was introduced with 165 cosponsors, almost 40% of the House. A joint resolution of disapproval needed support from two-thirds of the chamber to override Pres. Obama’s promised veto.
220 cosponsors (220R).
Last major action: 7/16/15 referred to House Comm. on Foreign Affairs.