The Honorable Ted Lieu
United States House of Representatives
415 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-0533

July 20, 2015

Congressman Lieu:

The Santa Monica Democratic Club has been a strong supporter of yours for many years. Last spring, we were one of the first clubs to endorse your bid for Congress. Over the last seven months, you have proven yourself to be a hard-working and effective member of Congress, worthy of the seat formerly held by the great Rep. Henry Waxman, who represented our community for four decades.

We are writing today to express our full-throated support of the Obama Administration’s historic deal with Iran, which was announced last week. We believe that this deal represents a major step forward in making the world a safer place, and we urge you to vote in support of its implementation.

Just over a decade ago, a previous administration led the drumbeat to war in Iraq based on fabricated evidence and scare tactics. As you know, this resulted in one of the greatest foreign policy disasters in American history with its effects still being felt today throughout the Middle East. When then-Senator Barack Obama campaigned for the presidency in 2007 and 2008, he made his opposition to this war a core tenant of his candidacy; he believed in war only as a last resort, and he promised to exhaust all diplomatic options first.

True to his word, the Obama Administration, along with five international partners, have negotiated an agreement that serves the vital national security interests of the United States and its allies, including Israel. The deal drastically reduces Iran’s nuclear stockpile by 97% in addition to its number of centrifuges and the amount of uranium that can be enriched. Most importantly, this deal contains the most invasive inspection program that has ever been part of any international deal, and it gives us the ability to reinstate sanctions at any point if we feel Iran is violating its terms.

The Santa Monica Democratic Club, with its 280 members, believes that peace is a fundamental progressive value. To not accept the terms of this deal would mean that Iran could continue its nuclear weapons program without the fear of crippling sanctions or intrusive inspections. Ultimately, we fear this would lead us down the inevitable path to a war with Iran, a truly unacceptable outcome.

We trust that you will evaluate the specifics of this deal over the weeks to come and are hopeful that you will ultimately support the deal. Our club looks forward to supporting you as you face reelection as well as in the years to come. We thank you for looking out for the interests of our community, and, of course, we invite you any time to address our club at a future meeting.

Sincerely,