Soon after President Barack Obama signed an executive order revoking sanctions against Iran for seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, Republican critics and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee issued stark warnings as the July 2015 accord forged by the United States and world powers began taking effect.
This latest step - "implementation day" as it is called in the text of the JCPOA - also comes on the heels of Tehran releasing four American prisoners held in Iranian custody, including Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian, in exchange for seven people imprisoned or charged in the United States, according to US and Iranian officials.
Invoking images of the 10 US Navy sailors' detainment earlier this week and citing Iran's testing of ballistic missiles earlier this month, Rubio said the deal "rewards bad behavior" and that injecting large sums of cash into the Iranian economy will bolster the rule of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad and foment the growth of the Islamic State terrorist group.