Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), two of the most hawkish members of Congress, are working together to sabotage the Trump administration’s chances of reaching a deal with Iran.
On Thursday, the senators held a press conference outlining a resolution they’re introducing that demands that any deal with Iran must include the total dismantlement of Tehran’s nuclear enrichment program, an idea that Iranian officials have made clear is a non-starter.
“To the Iranian regime: you claim all you want is a peaceful nuclear power program. You can have it, but you cannot enrich and you must dismantle,” Graham said. “And you must dismantle now.”
Graham and Cotton said that any deal must require ratification from the Senate and must also impose limits on Iran’s ballistic missile program and support for its allies in the region, conditions that are also a non-starter for Tehran.

“A treaty with Iran in this space is only possible if you get 67 votes,” Graham said. “You’re not going to get 67 votes for a treaty regarding their nuclear program unless they deal with the missile program and their terrorism activity. So is it possible? Yes, if Iran changes.”
The senators also repeated President Trump’s threat that if there is no deal, the US will attack Iran. “Iran can either have a nuclear program that’s lying in ruins, smoking, destroyed, and dismantled, or it can have a peaceful civilian nuclear power program with no centrifuges, no enriching, no re-processing, and no pathway to a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Trump has been threatening to bomb Iran over its nuclear program even though his intelligence agencies recently reaffirmed that there’s no evidence Tehran is building a bomb or that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has reversed his ban on the development of nuclear weapons.
Iran is currently enriching some uranium at 20% and 60%, which is still lower than the 90% needed for weapons-grade. Tehran has made clear that it’s willing to bring enrichment levels back down to 3.67%, the limit imposed by the JCPOA.
““A treaty with Iran in this space is only possible if you get 67 votes,” Graham said.”
Who said anything about a treaty? Treaties are so 19th century … we’re an empire now, as W’s brain said, and empires make deals as needed and desired by the emperor. They don’t need ratification by some silly senators!
They must be getting worried … dare I hope?
https://x.com/briantashman/status/1920569395782222092
Against all odds, Trump had to fight EVERYBODY to get where he is, including the Pro-War Establishment of the republican party that never wanted him and fought him every step of the way.
So what?
Can you name a pro war republican that doesn't back Trump and has "fought him every step of the way"? And how do they differ from Trumps demand that Iran must "dismantle now"?
It would be interesting if Warren could come up with a name. I can not.
Lisa Murkowski aka “Queen of the RINOs”.
Nice try. Too bad she is a hawk on Iran.
You caught me off guard. None could come to my head. But in no way has Trump had to fight "every step of the way" against the republican party, or any faction of it. I mean he ran the party from his golf course in Florida for 4 years.
Yet the two greatest war hawks – Cotton and Graham – fully supported and are still supporting Trump. It's nothing but a game they play to make Trump look good. If Republicans were so much against Trump as you say, Trump would not be in office or would already have been 25th Amendmented.
Of course they support him. Trump won the election, gave them majorities in the House and Senate and their constituents overwhelmingly support him. Not much they can do.
How many presidents lately ran on stopping the wars, but didn't? count 'em!
Iran, over decades have many times been caught enriching nuclear material far beyond what is necessary for peaceful purposes, according to IAEA.Org. So lets make a deal!
The Islamic Government of Iran has to go. The number one destination for Iranians with a post secondary education leaving Iran is to the USA. The US has the largest population of Iranians outside of Iran, and we are happy to receive them, but it also causes a brain drain for Iran.
The IAEA has never accused the Iranians of enriching uranium beyond the levels entailed by their commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
They DID start violating the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, AFTER the other parties violated it and as a way of pushing them to stop violating it, and have said if the other parties want to get back into compliance, they will happily mix the enriched uranium with raw or lower-enriched uranium to get it back to the levels agreed.
You only have to review the history in the IAEA website. If what you are say is true, then the Islamic Regime has nothing to hide and would gladly submit to full inspections to satisfy the UN governing body.
Inspections are not the problem; taking “yes” for an answer is the problem.
What does the IAEA say about Israel in this regard?
"happily mix the enriched uranium with raw or lower-enriched uranium to get it back to the levels agreed" And you believe them?
No one has to believe them. The JCPOA was called the "NPT on steroids" for a reason. The most intrusive inspections on the planet.
Trying so hard to educate the uneducated…! Only if it sinks in…!
LOL now tell us about Israel's, a "non-nuclear state" enrichment and nuclear bomb program. What does the IAEA say about that?
These two Clowns might as well move to Israel…! US doesn't need them…!
I don't think the Israelis need them either. Their donors don't need them other than to prevent real quality people taking their seats in the Senate.
Hawks are not my cup of tea!……Peace in the ME is essential for all the world!…..!…….!……………………………………………….
Behind the scenes: https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2025/05/09/747623/Netanyahu-hires-MKO-terrorists-sabotage-Iran-US-talks
Do these bozos realize that their anti-Iran stance is driving Iran in the very direction they falsely accusing Iran to be in? Real smart and mind-bogglingly and arrogantly STUPID beyond excuse!!!
Here's where Tom Cotton gets his money: https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/tom-cotton/summary?cid=N00033363&cycle=career
Top Contributors, 2011 – 2024
Contributor Total Individuals PACs
Club for Growth $707,857 $707,857 $0
Stephens Inc $219,751 $199,751 $20,000
Elliott Management $193,500 $193,500 $0
Goldman Sachs $185,314 $155,314 $30,000
Apollo Global Management $114,488 $114,488 $0
He should go back to cotton farming in the south…!
"[our] stage has been defiled by [our] greed, and that is why [we] have tyrants…" https://youtu.be/wDV0nm5D3vk?t=4054
Tom Cotton & Lindsay Graham are out of their cotton picking minds. All that cotton they picked clogged up their brains. They both miss the Late John McCain for saying "Bomb, Bomb, Bomb Iran".
They want the USA to be at war with the ME till the end of time & deny the USA starts unprovoked wars. They are like George W Bush & Tony Blair, they lie about Iran threatening peace with WMD & W & Blair lied about Iraq threatening peace with WMD.
I wonder what Israel has on these freaks.
No character and money does it all the time.
They are a pair that are as natural as the color brown is to shit. Graham and McCain were joined at the hip and Cotton is the reincarnation of McCain. A match made in
heavenhell."At no point in history did we have warmongers who were not warriors… Hannibal… Napoleon… Julian… Valerian.. etc" https://youtu.be/Dn_XEDPIeU8?t=492
With all the radioactive substances around, nobody really needs an A or H bomb. Just load it all into a missile and the result would be contamination for a long, long time.
That would help the depopulation agenda.
Deep State giving Iran a "covid shot" through nuclear attack. Weird how the nuclear powers want to destroy a nation that renounces nukes. From where we all sit, which nation has been the Head Slaughterer, so to speak, since 10-7-2023? Pretty obvious to me and should be to everyone. It's time to pull the plug on the putrid "support" Israel has milked out of the USA treasure pot for so long!
Here's where Graham gets his money: https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/lindsey-graham/summary?cid=N00009975
Top Contributors, 2019 – 2024
Contributor Total Individuals PACs
Republican Jewish Coalition $103,794 $95,555 $8,239
Nelson, Mullins et al $71,813 $51,813 $20,000
Boeing Co $55,375 $36,375 $19,000
US Dept of Defense $50,886 $50,886 $0
US Government $46,529 $46,529 $0
I apologize for the longer than usual delay in getting comments out of moderation.
Friday is effectively Saturday for me, so this morning I approved (or, if needed, deleted) comments in moderation until about 7:45am Eastern time, got on my motorcycle at 8 am, rode about 50 miles to Cedar Key, got in a tandem kayak with a friend, paddled across a portion of the Gulf of Mexico to Atsena Otie Key, explored and enjoyed that island for a while, paddled back to Cedar Key, had a late lunch at a restaurant, got on the motorcycle, rode about 50 miles back home, and got to comment moderation about 15 minutes later.
Gulf of Mexico, hey sounds familiar. Isn't that the body of water near San Diego, where you can see Mexicans dumping all their raw sewage in? I took some MAGA geography lessons, so I know that sort of stuff now.
Did you mean the "Gulf of America"? /s
Nope. I’m pushing 60 years old so I’m not likely to just adopt new names for longstanding geographical features on the whims of whomever happens to be president at the moment.
I had no reason to think of Mount McKinley as “Denali” just because Obama renamed it in 2015, either. I mean, I heard the word “Denali,” but didn’t really associate it with anything. When Trump returned it to its previous name, I was surprised to recall that it had ever been RE-named.
I did not even know Obama did that. And I'm glad I didn't. This will get comical.
Mount McKinley was the original renaming (in 1917). The mountain is known in Alaska, by the people who have lived their for all purposes since the dawn of time, by its common name Denali.
The Alaskans have since 1975 been requesting that silly renaming after an American President being undone and to restore its original name. That request has been consistently blocked by another American state: Ohio, which I understand isn't located anywhere near this particular mountain.
Maybe leave the Alaskans to name their things and let Ohio be renamed McKinleystan and then everybody is happy.
Just curious, how did the state of Ohio block the renaming?
They exploit a technicality in the procedure for the US Board on Geographic Names to adopt naming proposals. They can't rename with legislation pending. So Ohio representatives submit legislative proposals at the arrival of any new request that need not accomplish anything or go anywhere or be sensical in any way, since the purpose is not anything other than to block the process going forward.
I don’t particularly care what it’s called, by whom or why.
I was born in 1966 and thus throughout my lifetime until 2015 (when I didn’t notice it was “renamed”), I knew it as Mount McKinley because that’s what I was told it was called starting in elementary school geography classes. So I’m just not inclined to hop back and forth with my own usage every time this or that faction prevails in naming it, re-naming it, or un-renaming it.
There’s no “right” or “wrong” name for Denali/Mount McKinley, the Gulf of Mexico/Gulf of America/Gulf of Trump, etc. There’s just whatever people choose to call it for whatever reasons make sense to them. The reason that makes sense to me is “that’s what I’ve always heard it called and it’s not worth a bunch of agonizing over.”
Sure, I understand that. It isn't important to me either. But it seems to be important to real or native Alaskans. And it is weird that their tallest mountain that they know by the logical, appropriate name of The Great One needs to be renamed of course after some rather mediocre white European colonist dude who is deemed important by other white European dudes to other white European dudes. This practice is what is known in modern (perhaps post-Thomasian) parlance as "cultural imperialism."
Sounds like a fun day.
What kind of motorbike do you have…?
A little Chinese 150cc. The brand name is Italica, but that's just a boutique American rebrand of a Zhilong product. I'm planning on a bigger bike in the next year or two, this was my "new to riding a motorcycle" bike.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d35b00ee0e4e430ee653e744ec917265d11b0b7596d8dd63bb163023ddf890a3.jpg
Nice…!
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/9bd50435271b680652d36901bf9db91419dde29d956ea335c04d7b490ed11a3b.png
I like it. It’s a fun little bike. It has a CTV transmission (like a scooter) so I can work on my other riding skills before having to worry about shifting. It has a supposed top speed of 55mph, but I’ve hit 60 on it a few times — adequate for “country highway” riding which covers most of my local area. I recently got the CTV upgraded with a different variator, different set of weights, and kevlar belt, and now it hits that 55 mph mark at 7,000 RPMs instead of 8,500. I figured a cheap Chinese GY-6 engine shouldn’t be strained so much; from the factory, they’re pretty much tuned to run optimally at 20-40 miles per hour for town use.
It doesn't seem that little, but nice looking and well built… The exhaust sound appears to be low… correct…? Also after 100 miles how much fuel left in the tank…?
It’s definitely “mini-moto” in size, like a Honda Navi or Grom. Yes, low exhaust.
I’ve never tried to make 100 miles on a tank. The best mileage I’ve had out of it is about 75mpg, usally more like 65mpg, and the tank (depending on which spec sheet you believe) is either 1.3 or 1.4 gallons, so by the time I hit 60 miles my “low fuel” light is blinking.
If you like to kayak, I invite you to come up to N. Idaho where there are beautiful pristine very large lakes, no gators, fewer mosquitoes and boats. Farragut St. Park is at the So. end of Lake Lake Pend Oreille (/ˌpɒndəˈreɪ/ POND-ə-RAY) or just say Ponderay also has 40 miles of nature trails. Lots of bikers here and the biker hot spot is the Past Time bar in Athol near the park. No traffic on the back roads is where they all ride. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/2ab53ec63decb9fae52e21b5bf5de5a251b87707d96de55ffca286776c9e348d.png https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b635975801b8270ff2cea6c23a7665c0af9c39255de542f12372a8672a5471f5.png
Idaho is on my list of the Lower 48 that I haven’t visited yet, and I eventually hope to make a motorcycle camping trip through there! If so, we should do coffee or something!
My plan, eventually, is to go to California (where I have been, then ride through the states out west I haven’t been to yet (Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, the Dakotas) before knocking out the northeastern states I haven’t seen (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Delaware).
I think all of those are the only Lower 48 ones I haven’t made it to yet). Technically I’ve been in Maine, but I slept through it (charter aircraft fueled up there before flying to Saudi Arabia).
I’ve only been kayaking twice — once on a river, once on the Gulf — but I like it a lot. Unfortunately, my wife will NOT get on a small boat (a cousin of hers drowned on a float trip in high school), so she rejected my suggestion that we get a couple, or a tandem, and hit some of the many rivers and lakes within an hour or so of where we live.
I think we have the most criminally insane government ever.
Trump, the King of spam, a conman, selling coins and trinkets and ads from the oval office like a fishmonger making millions in days.
Trump is a convicted felon, a man without any sense of responsibility that comes with the job to be president. Thousands of families are being ruined, harmed by his co-president Musk and not one in his administration said a word. But all wanted to be filmed adoring the sh*tty leader. and we call it Democracy, what a low for the nation.
That is what Americans voted for in November. They knew what they were getting and now they are getting it.
I do blame the Democrats, because they let their voters down, they took the money and joined the Republicans, only one party left, a democracy it is not.
Insane John McCain was marginally more retarded than Lindsey Graham.
John McCain was shot down over Vietnam in service of America. What did you do in service of America?
Well not much except: 21 years as a Naval Aviator and fighter pilot, 4 carrier deployments worldwide, flew in combat being shot at by 17 surface to air missiles, engaged 8 MiGs over Lebanon and Syria, flew cover for the Marines over Beirut when we lost 241 of our guys, over three years logged at sea flying day and night off carriers, and worked in several classified programs.
You must be a non-military armchair brainwashed civilian who just parrots phrases with no clue as to our sacrifice.
Here is a clue buddy: Many Naval Aviators dislike John McCain. He was an opportunist and never should have graduated from the Naval Academy. If his father and grandfather were not Admirals John McCain would have been kicked out of the academy. He had the most demerits ever and still was allowed to graduate. Nepotism is part of the American military.
John McCain's wife was loyal to him and waited when he was a POW. He threw her under the bus to marry a wealth woman from Arizona and parleyed that into a political career.
Then there is the insane John McCain who pushed for NATO in Ukraine and Georgia while meeting with known terrorists in Syria.
Think before expressing your opinion: Everybody has one!
America lost over 10,000 aircraft over Vietnam including over 200 A-4 Skyhawks. I flew that jet off ships along with the F-14 Tomcat and have 505 carrier landings (Traps).
Here's an opinion: Glad to know you've since come around after leaving the military and I agree with much of what you've said about McCain, but a lot of us former grunts and Marines think you fly boys are just bomb dropping cowards who murder civilians (or spread chemicals) without getting your hands dirty or putting your own skin in the game (unless fighting a peer military/air force, but when's the last time we did that or had any dogfights?).
I was a grunt myself, and personally felt like my job was probably safer than flying through the air at multiples of the speed of sound in a metal tube covered with bombs, etc. while people tried to shoot you down. And my understanding was that war or or peace, a carrier deck was the most dangerous work environment in the military.
Of course, as a kid, I wanted to be a pilot (because my brother, who was my main hero growing up, was in aviation ordnance) but I never had a chance at that — my eyes went bad in junior high.
Air Combat Maneuvering ACM has been replaced by intercepts with air to air missiles.
As for skin in the game we lose on average 2 aircraft and 2 crew on every peace time cruise. On my last cruise we lost 5 jets and 15 aircrew.
The Truman already lost two jet and a third fell overboard. Luck they had good ejection seats.
Those 5 jets would pay for 15 battalions and their post-service healthcare for 40 years.
Graham is a sizeable chunk of Uncle Sam's Behind.
Hey, Tom & Jerry (oops, Lindsey), while you're at it, why don't you demand that Iran restore the Pahlavi dynasty?
They cheered for regime change in Iran before…! They figured they would look completely foolish with two simultaneous demands…!
Nuclear free zone or Nuclear armed zone. No half measures. Israel will have to sign up for the nuclear free zone or have everyone else in the region get nuclear weapons.