MSNBC host and frequent Obama White House guest Al Sharpton gathered dozens of black pastors over the weekend ahead of the launch of his campaign in support of the Iran nuclear agreement.
“I am calling on ministers in black churches nationwide to go to their pulpits Sunday and have their parishioners call their senators and congressmen to vote yes on the Iran nuclear plan,” Sharpton announced Friday.
“We have a disproportionate interest, being that if there is a war, our community is always disproportionately part of the armed services, and that a lot of the debate is by people who will not have family members who will be at risk,” Sharpton said.
Sharpton’s nonprofit organization, the National Action Network, put out a press release asking “Dozens of Clergy Members to Appeal for Ministers Nationwide to Urge Their Parishioners to Call Their Congressional Delegations and Urge Them to Vote in Support of President’s Iran Nuclear Deal.”
Ahead of his #SaturdayActionRally at the House Of Justice in Harlem, New York, Sharpton told the press that he sees his support for the Iran nuclear deal as a counterweight to Obama’s political opponents who only want to defeat the president’s signature foreign policy achievement.
“There needs to be a balance in this,” Sharpton said. “Clearly lobbyists and others like AIPAC are pushing on their side, and there needs to be an organized effort on the other side. A lot of Democrats, I think, should have to consider how their voters will feel in their base vote.”
Meanwhile, Congress has less than 60-days left to review the details of the nuclear deal before they have to vote on whether or not to accept or reject the agreement.
Obama is currently 14 Senate Democrats short of the 34 he needs to uphold a veto. House Democrats are also split on the deal that is designed to reduce economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for more transparency of and restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
The most recent Gallup poll found that a mere 33 percent of Americans approve of Obama’s handling of the Iran agreement, while 55 percent disapprove. Also, 44 percent of Democrats disapprove of the job Obama is doing with Iran, and 55 percent disapprove of Obama’s handling of terrorism and foreign affairs.
The Iran agreement will come to a vote in Congress on Sept. 17th.
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