April 05, 2017
The Failure of Trumpcare Is Good News for the Iran Deal
The collapse of the Republican healthcare bill is good news not only for President Barack Obama’s signature domestic achievement, but also for one of his central foreign policy accomplishments — the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Two years ago I argued that the Iran deal would be the foreign policy equivalent of Obamacare and today that looks more likely than ever. Both face similar political dynamics and are extraordinarily complicated to unwind, meaning that in the near term they will most likely stay in place. However, lack of focus on implementation or quiet steps by a new administration to actively weaken and undercut them could result in their long-term collapse.
The JCPOA and Affordable Care Act were both extraordinarily complex and imperfect agreements because they had to meet the needs of so many stakeholders and also tackled incredibly complex subject matters. The Trump administration felt this challenge as it tried to negotiate new legislation that met the needs of both the Freedom Caucus and moderate Republicans while facing unified opposition from Democrats and major concerns from insurers, hospitals, doctors, and most importantly, the American public.
Read the full article at Foreign Policy.
More from CNAS
-
Iran is trying to score a political win against the US: Expert
Video
By "isolating" the U.S. from the other countries in the nuclear deal, Iran is winning politically but losing economically, says Ilan Goldenberg of Center for a New American Se...
By Ilan Goldenberg
-
Sanctions Alone Won’t Alter Iran’s Behavior in the Middle East
Commentary
The U.S. Treasury Department recently designated a network of 22 Iranian businesses as supporters of terrorism, including several banks and major commodities companies, imposi...
By Kaleigh Thomas
-
Jamal Khashoggi’s Murder Hurt American Interests, Not Just American Values
Commentary
Most observers have seen the murder of Jamal Khashoggi as the latest example of an age-old tension in U.S. foreign policy: the pursuit of national interests versus the defense...
By Richard Fontaine
-
Ilan Goldenberg on Israel Policy Forum Podcast
Podcast
Ilan Goldenberg, Israel Policy Forum's Policy Adviser and a Senior Fellow and Director at the Center for a New American Security's Middle East Security Program joins Evan Gott...
By Ilan Goldenberg
