Cautious Democrats seek Iran talks success but question backroom approach

Democratic lawmakers on the sidelines of the Trump administration's high-stakes nuclear talks with Iran largely hope for their success but lament being cut out of a process playing out behind closed doors.

While hawkish Republicans and a lone Democratic Senator John Fetterman have vocally questioned Iran's nuclear intentions as Trump has pushed for harsher terms, mainstream members of the caucus have mostly kept mum.

Trump in 2018 exited an international deal inked under Democratic President Barack Obama, much to the party's consternation, but its leadership has signaled cautious backing for a new stronger deal.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries last week blessed the diplomatic effort but questioned why Congress was not being briefed.

"With respect, we don't have a great deal of visibility into what President Trump is trying to accomplish in terms of the current negotiations with Iran," the New York representative said.

"Iran should never be allowed to become nuclear capable, and ... (a deal) should be longer and stronger than what had previously existed, and should be done in a manner that is verifiable and resilient."

Jeffries told Iran International "that a future agreement must be stronger than its predecessor—enforceable in a lasting way, with real consequences for violations.”

The crux of the dispute in talks appears to center around enrichment. While Obama's deal allowed limited uranium enrichment on Iranian soil, a toughened line by Trump's negotiators demands a total halt - a scenario Tehran has repeatedly rejected.

Senator Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was more critical of the administration's handling of the key foreign policy issue.

"As far as I know the administration has provided zero briefing to this committee on the negotiations, so they seem to be happening totally in secret," Murphy told Iran International.

"I think that's pretty dangerous for the American people to be kept in the dark about these negotiations, especially really sensitive negotiations that involve a potential nuclear war," he added.

Democrat maverick

Republicans, by contrast, who appear to have no more formal briefing than their counterparts across the aisle have consistently expressed in news interviews and social media posts a reticence to trust Iran in a new agreement.

Perhaps the harshest line on Iran has been taken not by Republican but by Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, a strident advocate of Israel who suggested on X last week that Washington should bomb its way out of the Iran impasse.

His remarks hinted that Iran's highly enriched uranium stockpile should be hit with a US bunker-buster bomb.

While bellicose Republican rhetoric toward Iran is familiar territory, a sitting Democrat openly advocating for preemptive military action is almost unprecedented in the post-Iraq invasion era.

According to an aide close to Fetterman who spoke to Iran International on condition of anonymity, he views Iran’s nuclear program as a “ticking time bomb.”

Fetterman, the aide added, believes any delay in confronting Iran militarily could leave both the United States and Israel with fewer and riskier options in the future.

An Israeli preemptive strike would be a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” to, in his words, “obliterate” the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions.

The emergence of Fetterman’s hawkish line has intensified long-standing tensions within Democratic ranks over the use of military power and America’s strategic posture in the Middle East.

For Democrats, Fetterman’s rhetoric adds a new layer of complexity as the party seeks to re-establish a distinct foreign policy identity in opposition.

While they seek to articulate a position that contrasts meaningfully with the Trump administration, avoiding internal fragmentation or policy incoherence will be key.