340 Rabbis Urge Congress to Support Iran Deal

As Congress prepares to vote in September on the controversial Iran deal, over 300 rabbis wrote a letter to Congress proclaiming their support for the deal and encouraging members of the Senate and the House to endorse the agreement, The Hill reports.

The Aug. 17 letter, signed by 340 rabbis, described themselves as a "national, multigenerational community of progressive Jews in North America."

The letter to Congress states that not all Jewish-American community leaders are in strong agreement with New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, the longest serving Jewish lawmaker in Congress who announced his decision two weeks ago to oppose the deal.

"After deep study, careful thought and considerable soul-searching, I have decided I must oppose the agreement and will vote yes on a motion of disapproval," Schumer said. "To me, the very real risk that Iran will not moderate and will, instead, use the agreement to pursue its nefarious goals is too great."

"Under this agreement, Iran would receive at least $50 billion in the near future and would undoubtedly use some of that money to redouble its efforts to create even more trouble in the Middle East, and, perhaps, beyond," Schumer said in his explanation.

However, CNN notes that the rabbis who signed the letter to Congress disagree with Schumer and believe a motion of disapproval would cause a larger problem.

"We fear that the outcome will be the collapse of the international sanctions regime, an Iranian race for nuclear weapons and an associated arms race in the Middle East and isolation of Israel and the United States from international partners,” said Rabbi Samuel Gordon of Wilmette, Ill., in a statement, according to CNN.

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