Dying of the fight
In face of diplomacy, he rages on
Say what you want about our Sen. Tom Cotton: He knows how to commit to the bit. There was cause for celebration at home and abroad with the end of the talks between Iran and a coalition of world powers led by the United States. Tough and principled diplomacy worked: The agreement reached prevents an Iranian nuclear weapon, and implements the most intrusive inspections regime in the history of arms control. But Senator Cotton wasn’t happy. With blinding speed, he rushed to cable news to denounce the historic achievement. As the CNN host gently prodded him to admit that the agreement— noting the required 98 percent reduction in its uranium stockpile, or the removal of two- thirds of its centrifuges from operation— was even a little bit better than Iran’s previously unrestrained nuclear program, the senator simply denounced the sanctions relief ( the proverbial carrot, necessarily accompanying the stick) Iran would get from the arrangement.
The display was, in a word, underwhelming.
As embarrassing as Senator Cotton’s fearmongering has been over the course of these negotiations, his objections to the Obama administration’s efforts to bring home a diplomatic victory has at least been entertaining. This last round of stubbornness lacked the reckless machismo of his infamous letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader, or the cocky stubbornness with which he insists an easy bombing campaign would solve the nuclear question.
That CNN interview should’ve been the senator’s grand finale— a dramatic moment wherein he revealed the ultimate means to defeat diplomacy! But instead the appearance reveals the truth: Sen. Tom Cotton’s well of cheap political tricks has run dry. Cue the sad trombone sound. What was once a beautiful display of message discipline— the political art of hammering home the same few points come hell, high water, or really smart reporters— simply seemed tired. A man who once displayed such breathtaking arrogance and ambition by trying to dictate foreign policy of a superpower as a junior senator is now stuck with talking points that fall flat in such a historic moment.
The American people, by more than a two- to- one margin, have embraced diplomacy as the best path forward. The rest of Congress, most of them willing to read the agreement before commenting on it, will acknowledge that this deal and the restrictions it enforces are our best option for preventing an Iranian bomb— leading them to vote their approval of this achievement. And the world came together under the banner of American leadership to seek this peaceful solution to a decades- old problem.
It is a great disappointment to watch our young senator squander the potential he had to bring real change to Washington. When it counted most, Senator Cotton gave in to the Washington machine and fell victim to the political trappings of power and partisanship.
He put himself above all else and lost the bet of a lifetime, with an entire political identity built on advocating for armed conflict snuffed out by the impartial, grinding wheels of history.
But his loss is our collective gain. America already went to war to keep a Middle Eastern country from getting nuclear weapons, and most of us learned the same lesson from that experience. We’ve charted a better course this time— one that demonstrates our strength and savvy while carrying the weight of the international community.
Senator Cotton may rage against the dying of the fight, but the rest of us— who take pride in staying safe without firing a shot— shall sleep soundly through this coming good night.