Republican U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois is blasting a preliminary nuclear agreement between Iran, the U.S. and other world powers.
The deal announced Thursday outlines limits on Iran's nuclear program so it cannot lead to atomic weapons.
Kirk is one of the most vocal U.S. senators pushing for tougher sanctions against Iran, aimed at curtailing the country's nuclear program. He says Iran will be allowed to “keep vast capabilities to make nuclear weapons,” and the U.S. and its international partners will “dismantle the sanctions regime against Iran.”
Negotiators have to take that deal and shape it into a final accord by the end of June. The agreement says “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.”
Meanwhile, Kirk says he'll vote to support Loretta Lynch's nomination for U.S. attorney general. He's the fifth GOP senator to announce support for Lynch, removing any doubt she'll be confirmed when the full Senate votes in coming weeks.
Democrats allege Republicans have been unfairly holding up the confirmation, though Democrats controlled the Senate when she was first nominated and failed to call it up for a vote.
Most Republicans say they oppose Lynch's nomination because she supports President Obama's executive action on immigration.
