Hollywood, FL— In yesterday’s debate with Nova Southeastern University law professor, Tim Canova, the former DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz attempted to defend her stance on the controversial Iran Nuclear Deal – a deal in which she was “mealy mouthed” and eventually voted for the deal and against Senator Chuck Schumer and her Florida Congressional Leaders: Ted Deutsch and Lois Frankel. Tim Canova, her Congressional challenger noted his unequivocal defense of Israel and said he would have sided with Senator Schumer and Representatives Deutsch and Frankel.

Wasserman Schultz’s controversial vote on the Iran Nuclear Deal raises new questions over a New York Times article published May 5th, 2016. In thisarticle, Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications for U.S. President Barack Obama and key Advisor on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran, boasted of the White House communications plan to sell the American people on what he admitted was a cooked deal with Iran. Since Wasserman Schultz claimed to have more access to the Iran Nuclear Deal negotiations, this raises serious questions of her role.

In particular, Rhodes boasted about creating a “false narrative” that the moderates were in charge in Iran, when in fact it was the hard-liner religious mullahs who were still calling the shots.  The false narrative was used by the White House to convince lawmakers and the public that the Iranian regime could be trusted to live up to its international obligations. The regime showed its true nature soon after the nuclear agreement went into effect when it began testing medium-range ballistic missiles potentially capable of delivering nuclear warheads to targets in Israel, in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1929 (approved in June 2010). 

Ben Rhodes played a quiet but important role behind the scenes. But it was Debbie Wasserman Schultz who, in the lead-up to voting for the deal, touted her insider status and access to key strategic information as the reason for her vote in support of the flawed Iran nuclear deal.

As Wasserman Schultz has told CNN’s Jake Tapper (at the 4:00 minute mark inthis clip), “I was in the Situation Room 20 times on this deal… I was given the most thorough review that any member was given access to.” 

Her congressional challenger Tim Canova asks, “Was Wasserman Schultz part of the plan to sell a bad deal to the American people, or did she get duped herself?  Was she distracted by her other full-time job as head of the Democratic National Committee, or protecting that position by going along with the White House on a bad deal?  Either way, Floridians deserve much more effective and reliable leadership from their elected representatives.”

Wasserman Schultz announced her support for the Iran nuclear deal in a Miami Herald op-ed last year.

That’s after she told Wolf Blitzer on CNN’s Situation Room that she would carefully consider her vote, because “it’s very, very important to get this right.”

WOLF BLITZER: Are you going to vote for this Iran nuclear deal? You’re a member of the House.
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WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Well, I think there are — there’s merit to the deal. There’s a lot of merit to the deal, but there’s also a legitimate cause for concern and I think this is a decision that no member of Congress should make lightly. You know, I found it particularly outrageous that you had some Republicans clearly who had not read the deal, who had not thoroughly examined it, who came out in less than 24 hours from this being announced in opposition to it. That’s just not responsible, nor would it be responsible for me to come out in favor of it that quickly. I want to take my time. My constituents at home have very strong opinions. It’s a very well-educated, pro-Israel district and I have respect from them and their opinion and I want to seek it while also making sure I fully understand all its implications, and as a pro-Israel legislator myself, it’s very, very important to get this right.

“I agree with one thing Wasserman Schultz said, that it’s incredibly important to get this right,” continued Canova, who has lived, worked and studied in Israel. “Iran is the greatest threat to Israel’s existence today. The Iranian regime has pledged to destroy the Jewish state and it continues to fund and arm Hezbollah and Hamas with rockets and missiles aimed at Israel everyday. That’s why it’s so troubling that Wasserman Schultz may have known the truth about the nature of the Iranian regime and continued to risk Israel’s security. She needs to explain to her constituents how she got this so wrong. Was she suckered into a bad deal? Too busy engaged in party politics? Or did she know the truth all along?”

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