Good Tuesday evening. In this edition: Trump says he'll soon release text of Iran agreement as questions swirl.
Plus, Israel, war powers, Blanche and B-52 crash.
Iran War
President Trump said he will release the text of the preliminary deal with Iran "in the next couple of days" as lawmakers and the public seek more details about the agreement.
Members of Congress are keenly interested in the details of the memorandum of understanding, whose secrecy has allowed the U.S. and Iran to give conflicting information about its contents.
Iranian state media has claimed that Tehran will get immediate access to frozen funds simply for signing the memorandum, but U.S. officials adamantly deny that's the case, saying any economic benefits will be tied to certain milestones.
The deal is also expected to allow Iran to immediately begin selling its oil on the open market, potentially providing a massive financial windfall.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) demanded that more information be released, saying the president "needs to stop keeping America in the dark."
"It's been two days since Trump claimed he had reached a peace deal, quote unquote, with Iran, but he still hasn't released any details at all of this so-called deal," he told reporters on Capitol Hill. "What exactly did we get out of Trump's failed war?"
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) also said he has not yet been briefed on the deal.
"I certainly have not yet, although we are requesting that, and I assume we will at some point hear from the administration with greater specificity about what's in that memorandum," he told reporters.
"I mean, we're all hearing in generalities what's been reported so far, but until I get more specific information, I'm going to hesitate to say anything more about it."
The public signing ceremony of the memorandum — which Vice President JD Vance described as a "very general" document, "about a page and a half" — is set to take place Friday at the Bürgenstock Resort, near Lucerne, Switzerland.
"I'll not only release it, I'll probably have a press conference and read it to you word by word so that the press covers it accurately," President Trump said.
Once the agreement is signed, the U.S. and Iran will immediately enter a 60-day negotiating period to work out a comprehensive agreement, which is expected to include the fate of Iran's nuclear program, among other thorny issues on which the two sides appear far apart.
"It's a 60-day period or so. I think it's going to happen fairly on time," President Trump told reporters. "Iran wants to get it done. They have to get back to business, and the relationship now is normalized, so I think it's going to go pretty quickly."
President Trump also said he would be willing to submit the finalized deal to Congress for its ratification, as lawmakers in both parties have requested.
"I never thought of it, but I would. I wouldn't mind," he told reporters. "What I would like to do is send it to Congress and say 'you shouldn't approve it.' And they will approve it."
"I will send it to Congress. I like the idea. I mean, who wouldn't approve it?"
President Trumpsaid he was "not happy" with Israel's war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, telling reporters it has gone on "too long" and that "too many people" have been killed. "I suggested to Israel to let Syria take care of Hezbollah, because to be honest with you, I think they'd do a better job of doing it," he said at the G7 summit in France. The president said the fighting was casting a negative light on his peace efforts with Iran. "They should have been able to do the job faster. It just goes on forever. And when that happens, it throws a negative light on the big deal, and that's the deal with Iran," he said. Still, President Trump said he has a "great relationship" with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, though he also called on him to "be more responsible."
The Senaterejected a ninth Iran war powers resolution, the first such vote on ending the war since President Trump announced his preliminary agreement with Tehran. The vote on whether to advance the measure was 47–48, with four Republicans — Sens. Susan Collins (ME), Bill Cassidy (LA), Lisa Murkowski (AK) and Rand Paul (KY) — joining nearly all Democrats in favor. Sen. John Fetterman (PA) was the lone Democrat to oppose the resolution. Five senators missed the vote: Sens. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has been making the rounds on Capitol Hill, meeting with senators as he seeks to win support for the full-time AG job. The Judiciary Committee announced his confirmation hearing will be held on July 15, with the goal of getting him confirmed before the August recess. Mr. Blanche met Tuesday with Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), three key senators as he seeks confirmation. Sen. Cornyn said he wouldn't make a decision until after the hearing, a position shared by Sen. Collins, who said she received assurances that the "anti-weaponization" fund is truly dead "with no equivocation at all."
All eight crew members were killed when a B-52 bomber crashed at Edwards Air Force Base in California during a routine test mission on Monday. "It took off and immediately after takeoff burst into flames," Air Force Col. James Hayes said at a press conference, calling it "a horrible tragedy." The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, a long-range bomber designed to carry both conventional and nuclear weapons, first entered service in 1955 and has been used in conflicts ranging from Vietnam to Iran.
For your radar…
President Trump continues meetings Wednesday at the G7 summit in France, including with the leaders of Egypt and India, before holding a closing press conference. He will then head to Versailles for a dinner with French President Emanual Macron. Watch LIVE on C-SPAN starting at 5:30am ET.
Jay Clayton, the president's nominee to serve as director of national intelligence, testifies Wednesday at a confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Watch LIVE on C-SPAN at 2pm ET.
Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh holds his first news conference since succeeding Jerome Powell as leader of the central bank. Watch LIVE on C-SPAN3 at 2:30pm ET.
