With congressional Democrats still on the fence, Colorado’s pro-Israel community is making the case against President Obama’s proposed nuclear agreement with Iran, saying it will increase rather than reduce the chances of war.

JEWISHcolorado sponsored a teleconference Tuesday with David Siegel, consul general of Israel in Los Angeles, who warned that the deal will be dangerous for Israel by helping Iran become a nuclear-weapons power in the long run.

“[T]here is an overwhelming consensus in Israel both in the leadership and in the public that this deal is dangerous to the future of Israel and the Middle East,” said Siegel.

He stressed that the opposition springs not from the president’s frosty relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu but rather from the details of the deal itself.

“It’s not about prime ministers or presidents. It’s not about party politics,” Siegel said. “It really should be viewed about whether this agreement or this deal stops the Iranian nuclear threat or not, and we believe that it doesn’t.”

In Congress, Republicans have lined up against the agreement while most Democrats either support the deal or remain uncommitted. About a dozen Democrats, notably New York Sen. Charles Schumer, have said they will vote against the deal, although so far not enough to override a presidential veto.

Colorado Democrats have said little since the deal was announced July 14 other than that they are studying the details. At a town hall last week, Rep. Jared Polis discussed the pros and cons but wouldn’t say how he would vote, according to the Coloradoan.

Democrats are under enormous pressure from the left to vote in favor of the deal, not just from the White House but from well-heeled groups like the Center for American Progress, which has called the agreement a “historic achievement for the United States and its partners.”

President Obama has argued that the agreement will help stave off a war by “permanently prohibiting” Iran from developing nuclear weapons and thus protecting Israel, noting that Iran has agreed to redirect its nuclear facilities for research and allow more intrusive inspections.

In exchange, the agreement lifts economic sanctions and unfreezes Iranian assets estimated at between $50 and $150 billion, which also worries Israelis. Siegel predicted the money would be transferred to “terror groups and proxies that are sowing discord and destruction.”

Foes of the deal are also concerned about what happens after the restrictions on Iran’s nuclear capability are removed.

“We believe the way this agreement was constructed does not stop Iran from becoming a nuclear weapons power, if not now, then 10 years from now,” Siegel said. “It doesn’t block Iran — it actually enables Iran to become a nuclear power. It restricts them partially for a temporary period of time but then like a carton of milk, there’s an expiration date on this agreement, and herein lies the major danger.”

The editorial staff of the Intermountain Jewish News urged Colorado Democrats to vote against the deal in a July 30 editorial, arguing that there is no evidence that Iran wants peace.

“These leaders, by their own proudly articulated statements, want an unfettered nuclear program, domination of at least the Middle East, sanctions relief and the freedom to spend those freed dollars the way they want — on terrorism in Lebanon, Yemen, Gaza, Iraq and elsewhere,” said the op-ed.

The editorial was addressed to Democrat Sen. Michael Bennet and Reps. Diana DeGette, Ed Perlmutter and Polis.

“That, in reality, is what you will be voting on, not on whether clauses and conditions meet sufficient standards of coherence and assurance,” the op-ed said.

Another sticking point for opponents is that Iran has yet to tone down its hostile anti-Israel rhetoric, even after the agreement’s release.

“If Iran was a country that was going to change, and if we saw serious indications that the Iranian leadership was considering this deal as a vehicle for change, then I think we would take a different position on this,” Siegel said. “But the problem is that all the evidence points to the exact opposite.”

Crowds in Tehran chanted “Death to America” shortly after the deal’s release at a rally featuring Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“The fact that they tweet out calls for Israel’s destruction in English. The supreme leader of Iran Just published a book, a 400 to 500 page book calling for the destruction of Israel and death to America,” Siegel said. “The fact that they make these statements day in and day out about Israel, Holocaust denial, anti-Semitism, we are very, very concerned that Iran isn’t changing and that this agreement will only make things more dangerous for Israel.”

Under the deal, he said that Iran would be allowed to maintain about 6,000 of its centrifuges, giving the Iranians an advantageous starting point toward building a nuclear weapon after the deal expires.

“Even though part of their program is gone, part of their program remains,” Siegel said. “Given the fact that they can continue to perfect it, it means after 10 years of perfection they will be even more dangerous and again, without the sanctions in place and with full international recognition.”

— valrichardson17@gmail.com