President Barack Obama warned lawmakers of the dangers of rejecting his proposed nuclear deal with Iran on Wednesday, stating that rejecting diplomacy could lead to a war and ruin the United States' credibility, reported Yahoo! News.
"If Congress kills this deal, we will lose more than just constraints on Iran's nuclear program or the sanctions we have painstakingly built," he said. "Congressional rejection of this deal leaves any U.S. administration that is absolutely committed to preventing Iran from getting a nuclear weapon with one option: another war in the Middle East."
Obama made his case at the American University in Washington, the same location that president John F. Kennedy used in 1963 for a commencement address to argue for peace with the Soviet Union.
As of today, the president has met with more than 80 members of Congress, and senior administration officials have met with more than 175 lawmakers to discuss the deal, reported ABC News.
Obama drew connections between supporters of the war in Iraq and those who are against the Iran nuclear deal and also commented on Kennedy's decisions during the Cold War, stating the "the world avoided a catastrophe."
One of the biggest detractors of Obama's argument is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who disagrees with the notion that the agreement is the only way to avoid war with Iran, and he openly discussed his views during his Tuesday webcast, reported Reuters.
The U.S House of Representatives, currently led by the Republicans, will vote on the acceptance or rejection of the agreement in September when lawmakers return to Washington.
"I don't oppose this deal because I want war," said Netanyahu. "I oppose this deal because I want to prevent war. And this deal will bring war."
