Members of Congress should be very leery of a proposal that amounts to painting themselves into a corner on a nuclear arms deal with Iran.

Recently, Secretary of State John Kerry urged critics of the agreement he and other U.S. negotiators are working out to keep their silence until wording of the proposal is finalized later this year. “We’ve earned the right to be able to try and complete this without interference and certainly without partisan politics,” Kerry insisted. That arrogant demand ignores the fact some Democrat lawmakers are worried about the negotiations.

But Kerry wants no input – he and President Barack Obama view it as “interference” – concerning the critical deal.

As matters stand, it appears there is plenty to criticize. Reportedly, the White House is ready to cave in to an arrangement that would do little to slow Iran’s development of nuclear weapons.

If members of Congress go along with Kerry, they will be stuck in a take-it-or-leave-it situation over whatever the administration agrees to with Iran. That would be imprudent – dangerous, in fact.

Lawmakers should continue to offer criticism, in the hope it spurs both U.S. and Iranian negotiators to work toward a reasonable agreement.