Hey,

I’m Ben Rhodes, a Deputy National Security Advisor to President Obama. For the past few years, I’ve been working closely with America’s negotiating team, which was tasked with finding a way to achieve a diplomatic resolution that prevents Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Last week, after two years of tough negotiations, our team along with our international partners achieved just that.

It’s a historic deal. It blocks every possible pathway Iran could use to build a bomb while verifying — through a comprehensive inspections and transparency regime — that Iran’s nuclear program remains exclusively peaceful.

The deal is called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and it’s important that everyone here and around the world understands exactly what’s in it and how it’ll work.

That’s why we launched @TheIranDeal — a Twitter account that is dedicated to delivering the facts and answering your questions about the deal and how it enhances American national security. Follow along now.

There are already a lot of myths, misinformation, and falsehoods out there about what this deal will do and what it means for the future of our national security. This is a strong deal, with significant constraints on Iran’s nuclear program, and unprecedented access to Iranian nuclear facilities — including 24/7, continuous monitoring.

And make no mistake, without this deal, we won’t have those constraints and we won’t have that access. That’s why President Obama has warned that without this deal, we risk another conflict in the Middle East.

So make sure you have all the facts about the Iran Deal, and send your questions our way on Twitter.

We’re ready to set the record straight about how we are successfully preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon — a crucial part of creating a safer, more secure world.

Thanks, and stay tuned for more.

Ben Rhodes
Deputy National Security Advisor
The White House
@Rhodes44

Opponents of the negotiated deal to prevent Iran obtaining nuclear weapons have the money.

But we have the people.

Since the deal was announced, outside groups receiving untraceable contributions have spent over $10 million on ads attempting to convince legislators to oppose the deals.

VoteVets was built for moments like this — there is no other progressive organization with the ability to organize tens of thousands of veterans and military family members nationally, and dozens in each congressional district.

We are the key to countering this attack on diplomacy, but we need the resources to amplify the voices of veterans who support the deal.

Contribute $3 to VoteVets today to help us lift up the voices of the veterans and military family members who support a diplomacy-first approach to preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

We don’t know much about their funding, but we do know something about two of the largest shadowy groups opposing the deal.

The first, Citizens for a Nuclear Free Iran counts Joe Lieberman as a prominent advisor. You may remember him as the Senator who led the our charge into Iraq before retiring in shame years later. The other includes the CEO of the Koch Brothers’ funded Concerned Veterans for America on their board.

This is who we’re up against, and it’s so important that the voices of veterans who support this deal aren’t drowned out by dark money.

Contribute $3 to VoteVets today and help us elevate the voices of veterans who support this deal.

There are two alternatives: support diplomacy as the best way to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, or there will be war.

Thanks for choosing the right side.

Jon Soltz
Iraq War Veteran & Chairman
VoteVets

President Barack Obama greets Alice Wong, Disability Visibility Project Founder and Project Coordinator via robot during the Americans with Disabilities Act 25th Anniversary reception in the Blue Room of the White House, July 20, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Read more about the Americans with Disabilities Act here.

By CAP Action War Room

More Conservative States Are Closing The Coverage Gap

The Supreme Court’s resounding 6-3 decision in King v. Burwell last month demonstrated that serious legal threats to the Affordable Care Act are over and the health care law is here to stay. Next up: Getting all 50 states to close the coverage gap and expand health care to low-income working people. Elected officials in the conservative states that have not expanded Medicaid may have been hoping the high court would strike a blow to the law, but now they are back to facing reality: they have no good reason to refuse federal funding to cover thousands of residents and add millions of dollars to their state economies.

Sure enough, previous holdouts are beginning to take the steps to put patients over politics. In the last few days, Alaska and Utah have announced steps toward expansion.

On Thursday, Alaska Gov. Bill Walker (I) announced he will use executive action to extend coverage to an estimated 40,000 low-income Alaskans. Walker — a former Republican who has since become an Independent — has been advocating for Medicaid expansion for over a year. Nonetheless, Republican lawmakers have repeatedly blocked efforts to approve the expansion. Now, Walker has had enough and will move forward with Medicaid expansion even without the legislature’s approval. “This is the final option for me — I’ve tried everything else,” Walker said.

On Friday, GOP leaders in Utah reached an agreement of their own to close the coverage gap. A group of six state legislative leaders have continued to meet since the end of the 2015 General Legislative Session to formulate a plan. Now, it will meet with policy makers and other stakeholders to create a formal draft in the coming weeks.

Long story short: on the map below, Alaska and Utah are bringing the number of holdout states down to just 19.

Which state will be next?

BOTTOM LINE: There has never been any moral or economic reason for conservative states to refuse to close to the coverage gap. But after King v. Burwell, conservative state officials have less and less of a political reason to hold out. Alaska and Utah have become the first states since the Supreme Court decision to put patients over politics, and it’s only a matter of time until the other holdouts come to their senses and make the right choice too.