Thousands of protesters poured into Manhattan Tuesday evening to demand, outside Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s New York office, that Congress vote against the Iran nuclear agreement.
“Change your vote!” chants reverberated through the crowd after former Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., said he was “shocked” and “disappointed” that Gillibrand decided to back the accord last month.
“Since the agreement was signed in the middle of July, [Iran] still says at the highest level they’re going to continue to support terrorism, they’re going to annihilate Israel and death to America,” Lieberman said. “How can you make an agreement with a country that wants to kill you?”
Lieberman joined Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina along with U.S. veterans, Jewish leaders, and state politicians to protest the accord during the “Stop Iran Rally.”
The 7,000 people police estimated in attendance coalesced to urge lawmakers to reject the agreement among Iran, the U.S., and five other world powers aiming to end Tehran’s nuclear program in return for international sanctions relief.
Lieberman said the deal does not accomplish this goal, but instead gives Iran a “legitimate, legalized path” to a nuclear weapon while still lifting U.S. economic sanctions.
“This agreement is full of holes,” he said.
He highlighted the provision allowing Iran to delay international inspections for 24 days and the secret agreement with the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency enabling Tehran to inspect its own sites.
Graham said those who support the deal are “crazy” to vote for an accord with hidden provisions that allows the Iranians to inspect themselves, backhanding President Barack Obama’s comments calling opponents of the Iran deal “crazies.”
“You’re crazy to give the ayatollah a hundred billion dollars. He’s not going to build roads and bridges and schools. You might as well write the check to Hezbollah,” Graham said.
He vowed to introduce additional sanctions on Iran until it stops supporting terrorism and said he would “cut off every penny” to the U.N. unless they give the U.S. access to the entire agreement.
The speakers lauded New York’s senior Sen. Chuck Schumer for coming out against the deal while forcefully urging Gillibrand to rethink her support.
The rally began just hours after Obama cinched critical support from Democratic Sens. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Chris Coons of Delaware, propelling the accord to nearly assured passage.
