Led by Senator Ted Cruz, a long-time opponent of the 2015 nuclear deal, the senators told Biden in a letter dated Monday that they would use “the full range of options and leverage available” to ensure that his government adhered to U.S. laws governing any new accord with Iran.

Indirect talks in Vienna between Iran and the United States on reviving the 2015 agreement are due to resume on Tuesday. Talk of a possible agreement has driven oil prices lower, with markets anticipating that the possible removal of sanctions on Iranian oil sales could boost global supplies. read more

The Biden administration has been trying to revive the deal, which lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear activities, a deal from which former President Donald Trump withdrew the United States in 2018.

Iran later breached many of the deal’s nuclear restrictions and kept pushing well beyond them.

Cruz and other senior Republican senators told Biden that implementation of any new deal would be “severely, if not terminally hampered” if he did not meet statutory obligations aimed at ensuring congressional oversight over revisions or changes to the 2015 Iran nuclear accord.

They provided no details about their plans, but Republicans have used various tactics to slow down other legislation or put holds on Biden’s nominees, including many for ambassador posts.

Democrats control the 50-50 Senate only by virtue of a tie-breaking vote that can be cast by Vice President Kamala Harris, but they could lose control of the Senate and the House of Representatives in mid-term elections later this year.

The senators said any nuclear agreement with Iran was of “such gravity for U.S. national security” that it would by definition be a treaty requiring the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate, they argued.

Any deal that fell short of Senate-ratified treaty would “likely be torn up in the early days of the next presidential administration,” they added, anticipating a Republican victory in the 2024 presidential race.

In addition, they noted that a 2015 law passed before completion of the initial nuclear deal requires that any new “agreement” related to Iran’s nuclear program to be transmitted to Congress for a 60-day review period during which Congress could pass a joint resolution of disapproval that would essentially prevent the deal from going into effect.

It said those mandates would be triggered by Iran’s progress toward developing a nuclear weapon over the past year, which would require new oversight measures.

Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Michael Perry

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-republican-senators-vow-thwart-any-iran-deal-if-biden-skips-congressional-2022-02-08/

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A South American migrant who recently crossed the U.S.-Mexico border said he did so “basically” because Joe Biden was elected president and would not have tried to cross under former President Donald Trump.

The man spoke to ABC “This Week” anchor Martha Raddatz at the border in Tucson, Arizona, saying he traveled from Brazil to Mexico with his wife and their three kids with the hope of entering the U.S.

“Would you have tried to do this when Donald Trump was president?” Raddatz asks the man in a clip aired Sunday and tweeted by Steve Guest, a special advisor to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

“Definitely not,” replies the migrant, who asked that his face not be shown.

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In the city of Kyle, officials said water should “only be used to sustain life at this point.”

In Houston, America’s fourth-largest city, there are long lines for food, gas and supplies. Things are also bad in Oklahoma, where President Biden declared a state of emergency after the longest stretch of sub-zero temperatures there on record. At least 34 deaths were attributed to the storm, 20 of them were from Texas.

The winter weather also created a political storm. Texas Senator Ted Cruz was criticized for flying to Cancun with his family this week, while his constituents suffered in record-low temperatures.

San Antonio to open water distribution stations

The San Antonio Water System announced Thursday that it will begin providing water distribution at seven pump locations around the city. Residents will receive up to five gallons per person and are advised to boil the water they receive as a precautionary measure.

The City of San Antonio and the San Antonio Food Bank will also provide bottled water distribution at sites around the city.

San Antonio has experienced water outages due to the winter weather emergency, and the San Antonio Water System on Wednesday issued a boil water advisory for customers who still have access to water. ~April Siese

Power restoration to continue into Thursday night

ERCOT is continuing its power restoration efforts, according to CBS Houston affiliate KHOU. Restoration will continue into Thursday night, and ERCOT told KHOU that its progress has so far come without additional outages.

That could change later on Thursday or Friday morning depending on how stable the grid is as its load increases.

“The generating units that were online this morning have remained on throughout the day. With generation holding steady, we are hopeful that more generation will continue to become available,” ERCOT Senior Director of System Operations Dan Woodfin told KHOU. ~ April Siese

Winter storms disrupt COVID vaccine effort as variants fuel new fears

As Americans yearn for their pre-pandemic lives, the distribution of coronavirus vaccines is hitting delays as winter storms pummel the U.S. The disease has not only impacted how Americans live, but how long. Jonathan Vigliotti reports for “CBS Evening News.”  See video here.

Winter storm continues to pummel South as freezing temps persist

CBS New York weathercaster Lonnie Quinn has an updated look at the frigid forecast.  See video here.

34 deaths tied to the winter storm

As of Thursday, 34 deaths have been linked to the severe winter weather across seven states.

The most deaths were recorded in Texas, with 20 residents dying from storm-related incidents. Here’s where they occurred: Houston (7), Taylor County (6), Sugarland (4), Galveston County (2) and San Antonio (1).

Earlier this week, a grandmother and three children were killed in a house fire in Sugarland. City officials said the neighborhood had been without power. The cause of the fire is under investigation. ~Zoe Christen Jones

“This is a nightmare”: Over 13 million Texans face water crisis

For many Texans, it’s been unbearable. Thousands of homes have been ravaged by the storm. More than 13 million — almost half of the state’s population — have water issues.

In many homes, the tap is dry. Finding bottled water is nearly impossible. Some have resorted to boiling snow. Houston opened 11 sites Thursday to help give away water.

When the pipes burst in Texas Representative Shawn Thierry’s home, her world exploded. She and her 8-year-old daughter are in a hotel, but they won’t be able to live there long term.

“I mean this is a nightmare, this is everyone’s nightmare,” Thierry told CBS News. “Your home is your abode, it’s where you go to find your peace and work and now, I’m uprooted.”

Thierry is among millions in a new phase of misery. As lights come back on, the horrors of the storm are revealed.

Water is everywhere — or nowhere, as many treatment plants were knocked offline. A line to get into a plumbing supply store ran for blocks. Even food has become hard to come by as some grocery store shelves lay bare. ~Janet Shamlian

Read more here.

Relief groups rush to offer aid in Texas

Local organizations in Texas are using their resources to help residents in need.  Warming stations across the state are still open and are urging residents to come if their situation becomes dangerous.

Organizations from outside the state are also sending teams to brave the storm. Mercy Chefs, a non-profit based in Portsmouth, Virginia, sent a team to Dallas to provide meals to those without water, gas, heat, or a way to leave their homes.

“This winter storm has affected so many people over such a widespread area in communities that simply aren’t prepared for this kind of weather – we’ve never seen anything like it,” Gary LeBlanc, founder of Mercy Chefs, told CBS News. “We are glad Mercy Chefs can respond quickly and get meals to those in need.” ~Zoe Christen Jones

Over 325,000 still without power in Texas

More than 325,000 Texas residents are still without power, Governor Greg Abbot said in a Thursday news conference.

Abbot promised to reform the state’s power utility, claiming that the Electric Reliability Council of Texas assured him Texas was “ready” for the extreme temperatures.

The state legislature will now investigate the company to find out what went wrong.

“Texans deserve answers about why the shortfalls occurred, and how they’re going to be corrected and Texans will get those answers,” Abbott said Thursday.

Some Texas gas stations are running out of fuel

Texas residents are encouraged to stay home or drive with caution. But those who do leave might have trouble finding gas. The winter storm has slowed down deliveries, leaving some gas stations across northern Texas completely out of fuel, CBS Dallas/Fort Worth reported.

Hundreds of thousands of residents are still without power and have resorted to using their cars for auxiliary power, charging phones, medical devices, or simply trying to get some heat.

But traveling is still a risky endeavor.

“Certainly what’s important for drivers to know is this is really more of a temporary outage, not a shortage,” AAA Texas Daniel Armbruster told CBS Dallas/Fort Worth. “So it’s really important that drivers not panic, and certainly don’t rush to the gas station to purchase fuel.” ~Zoe Christen Jones

A gas station ran out of gasoline in Euless, Texas, on February 18, 2021. MICHAEL AINSWORTH / AP

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NBA and NHL postpones more games

The severe weather in Texas is forcing major sports leagues to postpone games.

The NBA has postponed Friday’s matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets after the city of Houston suspended operations at the Toyota Center. The league said the game would be rescheduled for a later date.

The NHL was also forced to postpone Saturday’s match between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center in downtown Dallas. The league said it is working to re-schedule the four games postponed in Dallas this week. ~Justin Carissimo

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Vice President Mike Pence, who had announced he would not overturn the will of voters, confirmed the Biden victory at 3:41 a.m. ET.

Lawmakers had returned to the chamber in an act of defiance, with some Republicans who initially vowed to challenge states’ results due to voter fraud concerns announcing they’d instead vote to certify.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., called the breach of the Capitol a “failed insurrection,” adding that those who “tried to disrupt our democracy” had not succeeded.

“The United States and the Senate will not be intimidated,” he tweeted. “We are back at our posts. We will discharge our duty under the Constitution for our nation. And we are going to do it tonight.”

McConnell announced earlier that once the Senate voted 92-7 to reject the Republican effort to overturn Pennsylvania’s vote, the path would be clear for Biden to claim the White House on Jan. 20.

Despite growing support among Republicans to challenge the election result, the effort was always seen to have little chance of success.

PELOSI’S OFFICE STORMED DURING CHAOS

Dan Scavino, the White House deputy chief of staff, posted a statement from President Trump on Twitter that seemed to call for calm among Americans and demonstrate a functioning government for adversaries.

“Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” the statement read. “I have always said we would continue our fight to ensure that only legal votes were counted. While this represents the end of the greatest first term in presidential history, it’s only the beginning of our fight to Make America Great Again!”

In closing prayer to Jt Session of Congress, Senate Chaplain Barry Black says that “words matter” and speaks about the “quagmire” of today’s bedlam at the Capitol. Says members need to fight against “all enemies, domestic and foreign”

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The political fallout from Wednesday’s mayhem seemed to cast serious doubt on President Trump’s future as leader of the Republican Party. Sen Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican, addressed the Senate, saying Trump has been a “consequential” president over four years in office “but today … count me out. Enough is enough.”

Dan Scavino@DanScavino

Statement by President Donald J. Trump on the Electoral Certification: “Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th. I have always said we would continue our…

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Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who is projected to lose her runoff in Georgia against the Rev. Raphael Warnock, was among the senators who said they’d changed their minds about challenging Biden’s win.

“When I arrived in Washington this morning, I fully intended to object to the certification of the electoral votes,” Loeffler, R-Ga., said in remarks from the Senate floor. “However, the events that have transpired today have forced me to reconsider and I cannot now, in good conscience, object.”

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., also announced she would vote to certify the results.

There seemed to be a sense of sadness among lawmakers as it got later into the night. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., told reporters it was probably one of the saddest days he had experienced as an elected official.

“What normally would have been a tradition in the step towards the peaceful transition of power from one administration to another was marred by violence, thugs, misinformation and clearly should never have happened in the first place,” he said.

COTTON CALLS ON TRUMP TO ‘QUIT MISLEADING’ SUPPORTERS 

Detractors of the president criticized him for stoking anger among his supporters and said a violent incident was inevitable. They say the president has been pushing the false narrative about election interference for the past month and his presidency was bound to end in chaos.

Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram temporarily suspended the president from posting on to their platforms. The Associated Press reported that it was the most aggressive action social media companies had yet taken against the president.

JONATHAN TURLEY: TRUMP’S LEGACY ‘IN TATTERS’ AFTER SUPPORTERS RIOT AT CAPITOL

Trump’s supporters noted the president had called for calm. They say Trump never had his day in court and there were enough voting irregularities to warrant further inspection. They also criticized the media coverage of the unrest at the Capitol and criticized news outlets to essentially turning a blind eye to the violence that broke out in major cities last summer.

Donald Trump Jr. also called for calm in an earlier tweet.

“This is wrong and not who we are,” he wrote. “Be peaceful and use your 1st Amendment rights, but don’t start acting like the other side. We have a country to save and this doesn’t help anyone.”

Washington D.C. police said at a news conference late Wednesday that there were four deaths—including a woman who was fatally shot — and at least 52 arrests during the day’s disruption.

Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat who has clashed with Trump, ordered an extension of the public emergency that was already in place for the next 15 days, which will overlap with Biden’s inauguration.

The woman who was shot was Ashi Babbitt, a U.S. Air Force veteran from San Diego, Calif., a friend told Fox News. D.C. police confirmed she had been shot by one of their officers.

The other three deaths were medical-related, reports said.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told Fox News last Sunday that the Supreme Court was a “better forum” than Congress for vetting election concerns but the court did not take the cases.

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Cruz wanted a 10-day audit of the results by an electoral commission.

“Voter fraud has posed a persistent challenge in our elections, although its breadth and scope are disputed,” lawmakers said Saturday in a statement.

“By any measure, the allegations of fraud and irregularities in the 2020 election exceed any in our lifetimes,” Cruz said.

The senator condemned those who stormed the Capitol in a Twitter post. He said the Constitution “protects peaceful protest, but violence — from Left or Right – is ALWAYS wrong.”

He issued a statement early Thursday that called the incident a “despicable act of terrorism and a shocking assault on our democratic system.” He said he called for the electoral commission to give millions of Americans confidence in the election and “very much wish Congress had not set aside these concerns.”

But he said he respected their positions.

“Debate in the two houses of Congress is the proper way to resolve our political differences, not through violent attacks,” he said.

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Fox News’ Chad Pergram, Brie Stimson, and David Aaro contributed to this report

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Source: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/congress-certifies-bidens-electoral-college-victory-after-day-of-chaos-at-capitol

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