U.S. President Barack Obama is planning to make a major speech later this week to discuss the international accord to restrain Iran’s nuclear program.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Monday that Obama will raise arguments he believes are central to supporting the accord, which bars Iran from building an atomic weapon in the coming years in exchange for lifting crippling Western and U.N. sanctions.

Earnest also said President Obama thinks the U.S. Congress should support an international effort to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon through diplomacy.

The spokesman said no one else has put forth a legitimate option to curtailing Iran’s nuclear program other than the military option.  

Congress is in the midst of a 60-day review of the pact and is expected to vote next month on whether to accept or reject it.  If it is rejected, Obama has promised to veto the legislation, which would force the Senate and House to muster a two-thirds majority to override the veto.

A public opinion poll released Monday shows by a two-to-one margin U.S. citizens oppose the Iranian nuclear accord and think it will make the world less safe.

The poll by Quinnipiac University in Connecticut showed registered U.S. voters, by a 57 percent to 28 percent margin, oppose the deal the United States and five other world powers finalized last month with Tehran.

By a similar 58-to-30 percent margin, the voters said the deal would make the world less safe.  A total of 1,644 people were surveyed, with the rest of the people questioned saying they had no opinion, did not know whether they favor the deal or whether it will make the world safer.
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