The GOP Is Ridiculous and Out of Control

[Content Note: Racism.]

Let us call this what it is: Racism. The Republican Caucus will swear from here to the moon and back again that they aren't pulling this shit because the man sitting in the Oval Office is black, but they are liars.

The fractious debate over a possible nuclear deal with Iran escalated on Monday as 47 Republican senators warned Iran about making an agreement with President Obama, and the White House accused them of undercutting foreign policy.

In a rare direct congressional intervention into diplomatic negotiations, the Republicans signed an open letter addressed to "leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran" declaring that any agreement without legislative approval could be reversed by the next president "with the stroke of a pen."

The letter appeared aimed at unraveling a framework agreement even as negotiators grew close to reaching it. Mr. Obama, working with leaders of five other world powers, argues that the pact would be the best way to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb. But critics from both parties say that such a deal would be a dangerous charade that would leave Iran with the opportunity to eventually build weapons that could be used against Israel or other foes.

While the possible agreement has drawn bipartisan criticism, the letter, signed only by Republicans, underscored the increasingly party-line flavor of the clash.

Let us recall that the previous president, Republican George W. Bush, built his entire presidency around the unitary executive theory—the centralizing of federal power into the executive branch in defiance of the balance of powers and Congressional oversight—and the Republican Party cheered this authoritarian power grab all the way. Now that same party is trying to undercut the basic powers of the presidency, and undermine President Barack Obama's authority at every turn. That ain't just because he's a Democrat.

But, hey, don't just listen to me.

Whether the Republican letter might undercut Iran's willingness to strike a deal was not clear. Iran reacted with scorn. "In our view, this letter has no legal value and is mostly a propaganda ploy," Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, said in a statement. "It is very interesting that while negotiations are still in progress and while no agreement has been reached, some political pressure groups are so afraid even of the prospect of an agreement that they resort to unconventional methods, unprecedented in diplomatic history."

Now, of course Zarif has reasons why he wants this deal to happen, and thus reasons why it's in his own interests to categorize the letter as propaganda, but the most interesting part of his comment is that he calls the letter, rightly, "unconventional methods, unprecedented in diplomatic history."

The Republicans are trying to humiliate the President, but they are only humiliating themselves.