New anti-Iran sanctions in Congress could survive Obama’s veto

Contrary to most reports, it turns out that President Barack Obama’s veto would not necessarily spell the end of the road for tougher economic sanctions on Iran that Congress proposes to enact should the ongoing nuclear talks between Iran and the six powers remain stalled. A 67 Senate majority may after all be available to overturn the veto. This was indicated Thursday by the Senate Banking Committee’s 18-4 bipartisan approval of the new sanctions bill tabled by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill. The senators argued that the threat of new penalties would cause Tehran to take the ongoing negotiations more seriously, not disrupt them as the president maintains.