U.N. envoy Haley considers pulling away from nuclear deal

U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley made a case Tuesday for how the United States could back away from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and suggested that President Donald Trump may toss the issue to Congress.

Haley did not directly champion a U.S. withdrawal, but she claimed the nuclear-restriction deal is a threat to U.S. national security because its structure leaves loopholes and discourages tough enforcement.

“You can’t put lipstick on a pig,” Haley said. “We have to look at the reality that this deal is flawed.”

That appears to put her at odds with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who has argued that despite imperfections, the deal offers benefits including a reprieve from the imminent threat of an Iranian bomb and solidarity with European and Asian allies.

In an address to the conservative American Enterprise Institute, Haley left little doubt that she would support a presidential finding next month that Iran is not complying with the deal. That would be a first step toward a U.S. withdrawal and would trigger a 60-day congressional review that Haley said would be beneficial.

“Congress could debate whether the nuclear deal is in fact too big to fail,” Haley said.

Other parties to the agreement have said they would not walk away simply because Trump finds Iran out of compliance. But an understanding between the United States and Iran after more than three decades of enmity was the cornerstone of the agreement, and it is not clear how important or effective the deal would be without Washington’s participation.