US Iran hawks in congress in some disarray

[bemildred]

Xpost w. NS&D.

WASHINGTON - Hopes by Iran hawks here to get the United States Congress to wield the threat of a US military attack on Iran on the eve of next week's critical negotiations on Tehran's nuclear program appear to have fallen unexpectedly short.

While the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to reject "any US policy that would rely on efforts to contain a nuclear weapons-capable Iran", a key co-sponsor of the resolution emphatically denied that the measure was intended to authorize the use of military force and asserted that Tehran would have to test a warhead before it could be considered "nuclear weapons capable".

At the same time, the House leadership was poised to accept an amendment to the otherwise hawkish 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that declares explicitly "that nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing the use of force against Iran". The NDAA, as amended, was expected to clear the House on Friday.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Capitol Hill, a tough new sanctions bill that was supposed to sail through the senate on Thursday was blocked by some Republicans who said it was insufficiently hawkish.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/NE19Ak01.html