Rep. Tom MacArthur: Danger and Uncertainty Surround Iran Deal

Rep. Tom MacArthur tells Newsmax TV that the Iran nuclear deal is likely to be disastrous for the world in the years ahead.

"A nuclear-armed Iran is a danger to the United States and our allies," MacArthur, a New Jersey Republican, said Monday to Miranda Khan on "Newsmax Now."

"This deal will lead as sure as day follows night, to Iran being nuclear armed within a decade, and a decade is a blink of an eye in the course of human history.

"This is a bad deal for us, it's bad for our allies, particularly for Israel, but not just Israel. There are other allies in that region that are deeply concerned about this deal as well."

MacArthur isn't impressed with President Barack Obama's plan to meet with Israeli journalists to discuss the deal, in which Iran's nuclear capabilities are hobbled in exchange for crippling economic sanctions being lifted.

"The president overplays his ability to pitch things. This isn't a sales job, this is about the security of an entire region and ultimately for the world. It shouldn't have to be pitched," he said.

"If this was a good deal for everyone, it would be evident. But it's not. You need three things for a nuclear weapon. You need fissile material, weaponization, and a delivery system — and in eight to 10 years this deal will lead to Iran having all three of those.

"So it can be pitched all you can, but it doesn't change the fact that this will lead to Iran being a nuclear threshold or a nuclear-capable state in the near term and it's just unacceptable."

MacArthur also said that if the deal fails, the idea that sanctions can easily be put back in place is a fallacy.

"First, the sanctions will have expired by then and it would take a great deal of effort just to get a new set of sanctions here in the United States, much less to get the rest of the world on board," he said.

"In the near term, really immediately … it gives them $150 billion worth of economic relief."