McConnell: Obama appears ready to accept a nuclear Iran

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) said Tuesday that President Obama appears willing to accept Iran's acquisition of a nuclear weapon as inevitable.

"The more you look at it the more you are tempted to reach the conclusion that the administration is sort of assuming that it's going to happen and planning for phase two. What are we going to do, sell missile defense to every country in the area?" he said. "I think the time to deal with this issue is now and not kick the can down the road," he said.

McConnell said U.S. policymakers should take a more forceful approach and urged the Senate to consider a resolution authorizing use of force against Iran.

He appeared to take a step further than he did during a speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee Monday when he said he would introduce a use-of-force resolution if the intelligence community presents to Congress an assessment that Iran has begun to enrich uranium to weapons grade levels or development of a nuclear weapon.

At a White House appearance with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, Obama said that his administration would use every option to keep Iran from becoming a nuclear power.

"My policy is prevention of Iran obtaining nuclear weapons," Obama said. "And as I indicated yesterday in my speech [at AIPAC], when I say all options are at the table, I mean it."

McConnell said Tuesday there is wide skepticism within the Senate Republican conference that economic sanctions by themselves will prove effective and declared the time is ripe to move a resolution authorizing force.

"I think it is time to consider a resolution authorizing the use of force, a resolution authorizing the use of force is not the mandate to use force but clearly would indicate to the Iranians that we're willing to go beyond sanctions that many of us are skeptical are likely to get the final result," McConnell said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), speaking minutes after McConnell, warned his Republican colleagues not to act hastily.

"I think we have to be very cautious and with trepidation look at declaring war," Reid said. "There's only one person in the country that's commander in chief, and that's whether we have a Democratic president or a Republican president.

"I'm not going to be part of rushing forward on a declaration of war. These are things that have to be done very, very cautiously," Reid said.  "Let's stop throwing the word war around so casually."

In a Tuesday news conference, Obama shot back at his Republican critics, condemning their “bluster” in “beating the drums of war.”

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