Secretary of Defense James Mattis on Tuesday broke with his boss, President Trump, to tell the Senate Armed Services Committee that he believes the U.S. should remain in the Iran deal. “Do you believe it is in our national security interest [to remain in the deal]?” Sen. Angus King (I-ME) asked the secretary, who then replied: “Yes, senator, I do.” Trump has repeatedly railed against the Obama-negotiated deal, calling it a “bad deal” and claiming it is not in the United States’ national-security interests. Under current law, the White House must certify to Congress every 90 days that Iran is complying with the deal. The next certification date is October 15.
