( CNN ) As the world awaits a possible nuclear agreement between the United States and Iran , let us not forget : This is the second time in two years that President Barack Obama has pursued a nonproliferation deal with an unreformed regime in the Middle East . In doing so , he has ignored the regimes ' fundamental nature and the catastrophic costs these efforts have inflicted upon regional stability and U.S. national security . This month brought familiar news : more chemical weapons attacks allegedly by dictator Bashar al-Assad against his fellow Syrians . Just in June , the administration declared the success of its deal to remove al-Assad 's chemical weapons , which had been prompted by his August 2013 sarin attacks on Syrian civilians and the threat of U.S. airstrikes in response . The deal did yield an important victory -- the removal and destruction of more than 1,200 metric tons of al-Assad 's chemical weapons arsenal , which he can no longer use to threaten Syrians and Israel or fall into terrorist hands . However , with his actions as evidence , it was a deal that al-Assad likely knew he could manipulate . Even while the deal was underway , al-Assad continued to attack Syrian civilians and the opposition with weaponized chlorine bombs , exploiting a loophole in the agreement . The deal was also fundamentally flawed in that it relied upon al-Assad to declare his stockpile voluntarily without sufficient third-party verification . Just weeks after claiming success , the administration quietly acknowledged that al-Assad had secretly retained some of his most lethal chemical weapons . Al-Assad has also failed to destroy some of his chemical weapons facilities , as the agreement required . The deal made al-Assad a partner of sorts to the administration despite the grisly , mass atrocities he continued to commit . During implementation , the administration limited its support to the moderate opposition and did little else to pressure the regime to restrain its attacks on civilians or to allow a political transition . About 50,000 more Syrians were killed in the conflict during these months -- mostly at the hands of the regime -- and the displacement of millions of Syrians throughout the region continued . Meanwhile , ISIS further exploited the civil war , expanding into security voids . There are several troubling parallels between the administration 's deal with al-Assad and the one it is now pursuing with Tehran . Both represent deep cynicism or a fundamentally naïve understanding of the regimes with which we are negotiating . In both cases , the administration has tried to reach common ground with the world 's foremost sponsors of terrorist groups such as Hezbollah , Hamas and al Qaeda -- which these regimes have funded , trained or sheltered . All of this was true before the administration started these negotiations , and it remains true today . Neither Tehran nor al-Assad has changed ways and chosen normalization with the international community . To the contrary , external factors forced them into situations in which they had to cooperate at least ostensibly on isolated issues -- al-Assad on chemical weapons due to threatened airstrikes and Tehran on its nuclear program due to crippling sanctions . Both have only reluctantly engaged and have taken steps to delay , obstruct and circumvent verifiable agreements . As continues to be the case with al-Assad , Tehran has been emboldened by the administration 's approach . It has increased lethal support to al-Assad in Syria , deployed troops and supported sectarian militias in Iraq , and ramped up aid to other militant groups , including the insurgent Houthis in Yemen . These activities are now exacerbating the very humanitarian and terrorist crises that Iran helped cause by preventing political compromise in Iraq and Syria . As was the case with al-Assad , a deal will effectively make Tehran a partner to the administration in which the White House accepts the Iranian regime 's legitimacy by virtue of the agreement . And there will still be little confidence that Tehran will actually honor the terms of any deal it accepts . Even while negotiations have been underway , Iran has been caught procuring illicit nuclear technology . The regime has a track record of concealing nuclear facilities and obstructing the International Atomic Energy Agency 's access to others , including its infamous Parchin base . As IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano confirmed again this week , Tehran has still only partially answered one of the IAEA 's long-standing , 12 questions on possible military dimensions of its passed nuclear activities . Amid his continued calls for `` death to America , '' Iran 's Supreme Leader , Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , tweeted his demand just last week that sanctions be lifted immediately as a part of any deal , not as a result of verified observance of a deal . Tehran has demonstrated repeatedly that it will not allow verification of its passed activities or allow actual compliance to be a prerequisite for further sanctions relief . Without a complete understanding of Iran 's program , the international community does not have the information it needs for a responsible deal . A regime so committed to supporting terrorism , violently oppressing its own people and others , threatening U.S. national security and destroying Israel can not be trusted . And without trust and verification there can be no acceptable deal . The world has witnessed the results of such a naïve arrangement before -- an unprecedented rise of terrorism , a grave humanitarian crisis and a blatant disregard for human life . We are seeing it once again in response to the administration 's efforts with Iran . As we learned with Syria 's al-Assad , making a deal with a terrorist-supporting tyrant yields disaster down the road . Let 's not make that mistake twice .
Cathy McMorris Rodgers : the Middle East administration let Syria get away with continued chemical weapons capability . She says the Iran nuclear talks have the U.S. heading down the same dangerous road .